Two Nights in Republic City
by Madame Atomic Bomb
Summary: Six months after his affair with Toph in Ba Sing Se, Sokka's still torn between Suki and Toph. Forced to confront them, he finds that both women have surprises in store for him-maybe more than he can handle. Tokka, Zuki, Sukka
1. Prologue

**NOTES: **This is the sequel to "One Night in Ba Sing Se".

* * *

**PROLOGUE:**

* * *

"Feels good to relax," Aang said as he perched beside Sokka on a bar stool. "I don't really do anything but work these days. Seems I spend all of my time in council meetings, or training, or running after the kids. And with the third one on the way I don't like leaving Katara for long."

"My sister can take care of herself for one evening," Sokka said, staring into his drink. He was feeling moody, sullen, overworked. And he was thinking about things he shouldn't.

Aang laughed. "Believe me, I know it. Between her work with the healers, the kids, and the White Lotus, she's a one-woman army. She doesn't know how to slow down." The love in his voice was unmistakable and unshakeable. "Kinda makes me feel guilty for taking a night off. I should be there with her. She's due in a week."

"She does look she's ready to pop any day now," Sokka said as he gestured to the bartender, who promptly gave him another drink. Sokka glanced over Aang's shoulder at the rough little tavern. It was his favorite place in Republic City. It had just the right touch of sleaze about it, while still being reputable enough that a City Councilman and the Avatar paying a visit wasn't a complete scandal. The patrons all knew him well; it was his favorite hangout when he needed a break from the pressures of running a quickly-growing city. Though Aang's visits were rarer, the regulars were polite enough not to stare. Much.

"Yeah, that's why we've invited everyone to Air Temple Island. Zuko, Iroh, Toph….uh…even Suki…" Aang said gingerly. Sokka started, eyes flicking to Aang and back to his drink as he swallowed hard. A little pop of panic went off in his chest as Aang's eyebrow lifted. "Might be nice to get the gang back together. What do you think?"

"Sure. Sounds good," he said, noncommittally.

"Maybe you and Suki can patch things up?" Aang offered, digging an elbow into his ribs.

Sokka shifted uncomfortably in place, staring into his ale with a scowl. "I doubt it. We broke up, Aang."

"Yeah, but you guys break up all of the time.

"It's been a year since I last saw her," he said with a harsh edge to his voice. "Suki's got her life. I've got mine. We didn't work out and that's that."

Aang tilted his head, staring thoughtfully at him. He could feel the Avatar's hazel eyes as they studied his face. He couldn't help the scowl that took hold of his mouth, or the general air of misery that had been plaguing him for months now. Words tripped to the end of his tongue, desperate for escape. He choked them back, glancing at his best friend and then back to his ale.

"Is that what's been bothering you lately?"

"I'm not bothered…" he started, but Aang cleared his throat pointedly, and he switched tactics. "Okay, maybe I have been. But it's not about Suki. At least not_ mostly_ about Suki. I don't want to talk about it."

"Maybe you don't want to, but I think you might need to, Sokka," Aang said, leaning in to him, one elbow on the bartop. "You know I'll listen. And I won't tell Katara."

"Aang, drop it."

"Come on, you've been acting weird for months. Ever since you came back from Ba Sing Se," Aang said, a worried expression on his face, which changed to a narrow-eyed stare that was far too knowing. "And every time anyone says Toph's name you flinch. Don't think I haven't noticed. Did you guys get into a fight? Is that why she hasn't been around?"

_Dammit, Aang. Always so observant._ "It's…complicated. A lot happened in Ba Sing Se, Aang."

"You know what happened to Smellerbee wasn't your fault—"

"It's not about that." Sokka stared into his drink for a moment and then blurted, "I slept with Toph."

He wasn't sure what he expected Aang's reaction to be, but he knew for a fact that he didn't see the flash of a tattooed fist, or the brilliant burst of pain that followed coming. Stars flared and flamed out in his vision as he teetered on the bar stool for one punch-drunk moment.

"_Whaaa?_" he slurred and then slumped sideways off of the stool. He was unconscious before he hit the floor.

Sokka woke up with a start, dripping wet, cold, lying flat on his back in the cobbled street. A figure stood over him, the cold winter wind blowing his orange cape around his legs. He blinked groggily, lifting a hand to touch his wet face, and wincing when he came into contact with his bleeding nose.

"What happened?" he asked, sniffing back blood as he sat up and put his back against the alley wall. "When did the inside become outside?"

"When I dragged you out here," Aang said and knelt in front of him. "You passed out. Thought the cold air might do you some good."

Memory flooded him and he sat up a little more, glaring at Aang. "You punched me!"

Guilt suffused Aang's face as his mouth twisted up a little. "Yeah. Yeah, I did. Sorry."

"Non-violent monk, my ass!" Sokka said, pinching his nose to stop the bleeding. "Why did you punch me?!"

"I don't know! I just… You said you slept with Toph and then everything turned red and then you were on the floor. I'm sorry!" Aang said, putting a cup of water down on the cobblestones beside him. He waved his hand and the water in the cup spiraled into the air and formed itself into a ball between his fingers. "Hold still so I can heal your nose."

Sokka stared at him distrustfully. "How do I know you won't try and drown me?"

"Because I could have done that while you were passed out. And my wife would never forgive me if I did," Aang said as Sokka dropped his hand to his side. Aang moved the water over Sokka's nose and it glowed slightly, underlighting Aang's face an eerie blue. He looked slightly sinister and entirely untrustworthy. Or maybe that was just the pain in Sokka's face talking

Sokka opened his mouth and breathed shallowly as the pain in his swollen, bloody nose lessened under Aang's healing abilities. Katara had taught him well. "So I take it you disapprove?"

"I never said that…_exactly_."

"Pretty sure your fist said that for you," Sokka said ruefully, feeling the steady throb in his nose receding as the healing water soothed the inflamed tissue.

"I was just surprised is all."

"You don't say?" Sokka snorted, then wished he hadn't when water shot up his nose and down his throat. He coughed, choking, eyes watering, until Aang withdrew the healing water and slapped him on the back. After a moment he was able to catch his breath. He spat blood and water onto the ground between his knees. "Dammit."

"Guess that explains why she hasn't been around for a few months. And why it took Katara three letters to convince her to come for a visit. What did you do to her?" Aang asked harshly, accusations rampant in his voice.

Sokka looked up at him with a shocked expression on his face. "Nothing! I mean…we slept together, but I didn't… What are you saying?"

Aang crouched down in front of him, brows knitted together so deeply the crease enveloped the point of his arrow tattoo. "Look me in the eye and tell me you didn't know how Toph felt about you."

Sokka met his gaze and then looked away. "I knew. But it's not like I was playing with her. I didn't sleep with her just because I could! Aang, I wanted her! I wanted her for _months_ and after the attack…it just seemed like the most natural thing in the world. Being with her, touching her, kissing her… It was like a dream. Aang, I'm…I'm in love with her."

Aang stared at him for a long moment, and then sank down against the wall beside him, his elbows on his knees. He sighed and asked softly, "So. How did it happen?"

Sokka swiped at the last of the blood on his upper lip and rubbed it off onto his blue pants. He took a deep breath and shrugged. "It was the night our cover was blown. Smellerbee came to warn us that the rebels were coming and they caught us in the middle of the street. There was a huge fight. They killed Smellerbee and Toph got thrown through that window. We were outnumbered. Had to run. I had a safe house in the Lower Ring, just in case."

"I remember. Guess you left out some parts of the story."

He nodded and went on. "We were both hurt and…" he said, pinching the edge of his shirt between his fingers and avoiding his brother-in-law's eyes.

"And what?"

"I don't know, Aang. What do you want me to say? It just happened. We didn't plan it," he said roughly, gazing at the darkened street, the flickering shadows from an oil lantern tossing monstrous shapes against the narrow stone walls. It reminded him too much of that fight in the street. He looked at his hands. "Afterwards, Toph told me to forget everything we said and just leave what happened between us in Ba Sing Se. And then she wouldn't talk about it anymore. She acted like it never happened, and after we rounded up all the rebels, she just disappeared on me, even though she promised she wouldn't. Didn't even leave a note. Haven't seen her since."

"Sounds like Toph. She's not very good at confronting her feelings, you know."

"Tell me about it." They grew silent for a moment and he felt Aang's eyes on him again. "So…_you_ knew how she felt?"

"Of course. She's _always_ been in love with you. She hides it pretty well, but she lets things slip. Not often, but enough," Aang said. "I tried to talk to her about it once. She said I was being ridiculous and that you were in love with Suki and what was it any of my business anyway? Then she earthbent a wall between us and I took the hint and never brought it up again."

"She thinks I'm still in love with Suki."

"Are you?" Aang challenged him.

"I wish I knew. That's why I didn't follow Toph. I thought she was right, what she said about Suki and me. How I was a boomerang and eventually I'd come back to Suki, like I always do. Toph said she didn't want to come in second, and that she wouldn't stand in the way of what I had with Suki. I was confused, guilty, but that's no excuse. I should have stopped her from leaving or followed her and now it's been six months and she must think I don't care, that I went back to Suki like she asked me to, and that maybe we're even engaged…"

"Engaged?"

Sokka sighed. "Toph told me to marry Suki, that it would fix things. I didn't know what to think, to be honest. I couldn't figure out who I really wanted. Or what I wanted. After Toph disappeared and after I came back here, do you remember I left for a week?"

"Yeah. Said you needed a vacation after what happened in Ba Sing Se."

"Well, I went to Kyoshi Island. I had every intention of doing what I thought was right. Of asking Suki to marry me. I thought it would solve all of my problems and that I would stop thinking about Toph if I did. That what I felt for her was just lust and once I was around Suki, things would make sense again."

"And what happened?"

"I watched Suki training some girls. She didn't know I was there. She looked gorgeous. Capable. Deadly. Happy. I watched her for a long time, Aang. I can still imagine her now, how she looked in her uniform. Her hair was longer than when I'd last seen it and it was turning red in the sunlight. The way she _moved_… I remember thinking of how stupid someone would have to be to let that woman go."

"So what did you do?

Sokka licked his lips and glanced at Aang, then at the flickering shadows. "I left. I just walked away. I don't know why I didn't walk over there and kiss her and hold her and tell her I loved her. I just couldn't do it. I didn't think I deserved to. And all I could think about was Toph and how I told her that I was in love with her. All I could see was the hurt look on her face when she told me we could pretend it never happened. I didn't want to pretend anymore. I felt as guilty for being there with Suki as I did for being with Toph."

Aang's head dropped and he stared at the ground between his knees. "So which of them do you love?"

"I don't know. Both? Maybe I don't deserve either of them," he mumbled, the months of misery pressing down on him. It wasn't just what had happened with Toph. It was everything that had happened in Ba Sing Se. He still had nightmares about Smellerbee burning to death with a sword in stomach, of Toph's cut flesh, of their desperate flight through the streets of the city.

"And they're both coming here in a few days," Aang said in a commiserating voice.

"Yeah," he whispered, and touched his nose. "I don't want to hurt anyone, and I feel like I'm going to, no matter what I do. What should I do, Aang?"

"I wish I knew."

Sokka touched his nose again and then leaned his head back against the brick wall. "Spirits, this is going to be messy. Are you going to punch me again?"

"No, but I can't guarantee Toph or Suki won't."

Sokka groaned and squeezed his eyes shut tightly against the flickering shadows and the nightmares they conjured. "I can't wait."


	2. Chapter One

**PART ONE: LETTING GO**

* * *

**CHAPTER ONE:**

"Why are you pacing?" Katara asked, looking up at Sokka from the couch, a scroll in her hands, a brush in the other. There was a stack of parchment at her left hand, and a spot of black ink on the tip of her nose. Her swollen feet were propped up on Aang's lap and he was massaging them slowly, taking great care not to jostle her as she was writing, the parchment braced up against her massively swollen belly.

The children were not being as careful. Six-year-old Bumi was running around the room with a toy war balloon in his hands, loudly crashing it into every available surface, with accompanying exploding noises.

Kya was lying on the floor in front of a large sheet of parchment paper, scribbling odd shapes with a tidy pile of wax crayons Aang had produced to keep her busy. She was singing a nonsense song about sky bisons very loudly and off key, and her chubby little feet smacked into the couch with each word of the song, jostling Katara as she wrote.

"I don't know," Sokka said cagily and then glanced out the window, trying to judge the hour by the moon, but it was hidden in a bank of low-hanging clouds. The air had the feel of snow about it. Disgruntled, he turned back to Aang and Katara. "Shouldn't they be here by now? They should have been here before dinner."

"I'm sure they'll be here soon," Aang said diffidently, though he sent a pitying look Sokka's way. He ignored it.

He didn't need Aang's pity. What he needed was a clue on how to handle the shit storm that was about to drop on him.

"Well, if they're not here in the next half-hour I'm putting the kids into bed," Katara said.

"BUT MO-_OM!_ I WANNA SEE UNLE ZUKO!" Bumi protested.

"You can see them tomorrow. They'll be here for at least a week, okay?"

"Unle Zuko _did_ say he was coming, right?" Bumi sulked.

"Yes," Katara said distractedly, writing something very quickly, as if she'd just remembered to add it.

"Well, it looks like we're in for a snowstorm. I hope he's careful," Sokka said, glancing out the window as Bumi shook off his pout.

"WATCH THIS UNCLE SOKKA!" Bumi shouted, his little legs carrying him across the room at a dangerous tilt. "I'M UNCLE ZUKO! OH NO, THE WIND! WE'RE GOING DOWN! _BLAM-O!_"

Sokka turned his indulgent gaze on the tiny madman, a little smile on his lips as Bumi crashed the war balloon into the bookshelf, upsetting the furry little ball that had been curled up there, sound asleep. Momo startled awake, yawned widely and then blinked sleepily at the room and went back to sleep. The lemur-bat had gotten fat and lazy in his old age.

"Good one, Boom-boom," Sokka said, wondering how Zuko would feel about Bumi's confidence in his driving skills. He turned back to his sister. "I really do hope he's okay."

"Suki too. And Toph," Aang said in a neutral voice.

"Yes, and maybe you and Suki…" Katara started, but Sokka made an impatient noise.

"Don't, Katara. Please?" Sokka said, rubbing at his forehead.

Katara glanced at him shrewdly. "Fine. You know at least I get why Suki's been away for so long, but I can't figure out what's gotten into Toph. It's not like her to take off. You were the last one to see her, Sokka. Did she say anything? Was she acting strange?"

"Uh…" he started, a little pop of panic in his chest as Bumi jumped off of the nearest chair and took a tumble. He got up again without so much as a whimper and crashed his toy into the wall with a loud _kerplow!_ noise.

"She was visiting her family, I think," Aang said soothingly, rubbing Katara's feet with more vigor than necessary. "I think that's nice. You know they don't get along well and they've never been close. Maybe she's trying to patch things up for good?"

"You're right," Katara said, chewing on her lower lip as she wrote something else down. "I just miss her, is all. Are you sure something didn't happen in Ba Sing Se?"

"Yeah. You know, I'm surprised you even knew she was gone," Sokka said quickly, hands in his pockets as he paced in front of the wide window that looked out over Air Temple Island's courtyard. He could see Air Acolytes scurrying to and fro on errands. Judging by the way their robes were whipping, the wind was turning into a howling beast. A few small flakes of snow were starting to fall, visible as they drifted across the guttering torches burning in the courtyard.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Katara countered, lifting her head and glaring at him as Bumi went caroming into Kya, whose singing had begun to get steadily louder as the adults talked over her.

"BUMI! You stupid head! I'm tryna drawed a picture!" Kya said, exploding into an adorably violent whirlwind and punching at her brother's backside as he tripped over her. The swing missed, leaving a frustrated Kya making a face at her brother.

"Kya, no hitting!" Katara said sharply and then sighed as her daughter immediately made a pouting face and glared after her brother. "Bumi, could you please stop tripping over your sister?"

"Sure, mom," Bumi said brightly, and then took off across the room and immediately crashed his toy into the wall again.

"As I was saying," Katara said pointedly, tearing her gaze away from her eldest and turning back to Sokka. "What did you mean by that?"

"Nothing," Sokka said quickly and then met Aang's gaze. He was staring at Katara's feet, a warning look on his face. Katara caught the slight shake of her husband's head and turned her increasing ire on him.

"Excuse me? What is _that_ look about?"

Aang's hands lifted. "Nothing!"

"Aang…"

"It's just that…you know, you're… You've been very busy lately, sweetie. That's all," Aang said, and tossed Sokka a look that told him that he was seriously thinking about punching him again. "You're supposed to be on bed rest and you're still…you know, being…_you."_

Katara's mouth dropped open, her papers and brush falling into her lap. "And what does it look like I'm doing right now? Engaging in a fight to the death? Lifting heavy objects? Running a marathon? _No._ I'm lying on the couch getting a foot rub! What more do you want?"

"While you catch up on paperwork. Stressful paperwork."

"I AM NOT STRESSED!" Katara bellowed. "I'm just going over the finances for the White Lotus. I mean, who else is going to do it?"

"Sweetie, you're due in…"

"I'm pregnant, not a vegetable!"

"I never said… Katara, I didn't mean…"

"It relaxes me, so shut up!" Katara snarled, lifting her parchment with dignity and going back to work.

"Yes, dear," Aang said and he and Sokka met gazes. Aang looked like he wanted to strangle him. Katara's pregnancy mood swings had become legendary in their little circle and her wrath was something to behold.

_Sorry_, he mouthed at his brother-in-law, who let out a breath and went back to rubbing her feet. Sokka grinned to himself and went back to watching the window. He hadn't liked intentionally unleashing her on Aang, but least Katara wasn't asking him uncomfortable questions about Toph or Suki anymore.

Snow tickled the glass as the bare trees clinging to the island bent to the wind. In the distance, the glow of Republic City's lights turned the overcast sky into a hazy golden halo. Bumi came over to stand by him, his nose squishing as he pressed his face into the glass. His grubby little hands lifted as he stared up at the sky.

"You think Uncle Zuko crashed the balloon and died?" he said in a serious, worried voice.

Sokka reached over and ruffled his hair. "Nahh… I'm sure he's fine."

"Good, cuz he told me he was gonna take me for a ride in it the next time he visited."

"You know I helped invent it, right?"

"Yeah, right!" Bumi said, rolling his eyes and then taking off across the room. He intentionally ran across Kya's drawing and her left hand, causing the child to shriek in indignation and pain. Sokka turned away from the sound and looked out the window just in time to see a dark shape emerge from the low cloud cover.

"Zuko's here," he announced, trying to be heard over Kya's shrieking and Aang's attempts to calm her down. "HEY! ZUKO'S HERE!"

"YES!" Bumi shouted, pumping his fist into the air and taking off for the door, but Aang jumped off of the couch and caught him around the waist.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, not until you apologize to your sister, young man…" the Avatar started, gesturing to Kya, who was sobbing on Katara's shoulder. Sokka left them to it and jogged out the door of the sitting room and into the wide stone hallway toward the doors that led to the courtyard. He pushed open the doors without bothering to slip into something warmer, and then wished that he had the moment the cold wind battered him in the face.

It sent chills straight down his spine, as the snow pelted him in the face with a stinging force. Squinting, he lifting his hand and closed the doors behind him as he stepped out into the courtyard. The war balloon, the golden insignia of the Fire Lord blazing like fire, was being battered by the elements as well. Sokka gritted his teeth, watching as Zuko brought it down into the courtyard in a slow descent. The wind was tossing him to the east, causing the rear end of the balloon's carriage to slew to the left. It cleared the trees and then, with a mighty push from the wind, set down on the ground with a crashing screech of metal against stone.

"Come on!" Sokka said, gesturing to the Air Acolytes, looking much warmer than he in their thick cloaks, hats, and fur-lined gloves, as they gathered around to help. The wind was still buffeting the balloon, and Sokka knew that if it weren't tied down immediately, the whole thing could go tumbling across the courtyard and over the cliff, into the bay. If it didn't hit someone first.

He and the Acolytes ran sideways into the wind as he pointed to the ropes tied to a series of metal rings set deep into the stone courtyard for just that purpose. The wind was so loud, howling as it came in off of the bay, that words were lost immediately. The Acolytes understood him perfectly though and grabbed the guide ropes one by one and tugged them toward the balloon.

Sokka grabbed a rope, the cold searing his uncovered hands as he unwound it and dragged it toward the balloon. He looped the end over one of the sturdy rings set into the carriage's metal walls just for that purpose. Then he dragged the dancing rope back to the ring in the courtyard and tied it off with the strongest knot he knew.

The wind was increasing, he thought as he bent his head against it. The snow was coming down harder, and it was starting to stick to the stones beneath his feet. He breathed out and watched as the wind tore through the trees and then slammed into the balloon. The voluminous red material skewed sideways, touching the ground and then bouncing back.

"TIE IT DOWN!" Sokka shouted to the Acolytes, but the wind took the words and scattered them as it tore across the island. The carriage skidded across the wet, snow-covered stones, ripping ropes out of hands as it went.

"SHIT!" Sokka cursed, running toward one of the dangling ropes as several of the Acolytes attempted to stop the wind from dragging the balloon out of their hands. He grabbed it, wrapping it around his arm and digging his feet into the stones. It wasn't enough. The whole thing was going to tumble if they didn't get it tied down in the next few seconds. "ZUKO! DEFLATE THE BALLOON!"

He could see two figures in the carriage's steamed up windows, and a second later the door burst open. A red and black-clad figure, long black hair streaming across his face as the wind caught it, came stumbling toward him, running against the wind.

Zuko met his gaze with a nod, and grabbed the rope he was holding. Together they pulled it back, tugging it toward the anchoring rings. Beside them, the other Acolytes were doing the same.

Every step was a battle; the wind was winning, and the snow was making it hard to see. The temperature seemed to be dropping every second.

Sokka's feet slipped in the snow just as they reached the anchor, but Zuko didn't stop; he grabbed the rope and tied it off, then turned back to the balloon. The others were tying their ropes off, but Sokka could tell that it wouldn't be enough. The wind was too strong.

One of the ropes snapped as he watched. The balloon tilted again and the whole carriage started to go with it.

"NO!" Zuko screamed, running at the balloon as it started to tumble toward the cliff. An orange-cloaked figure suddenly jumped in front of Sokka and threw out his arms. Immediately the wind was cut off by a wall of hardened air. The balloon, anchoring ropes snapped and tangled, lurched to a stop in its headlong flight toward the edge of the cliff. The carriage was on its side in the snow, one of the windows cracked.

"Is anyone hurt?" Aang asked, still holding the wall of hardened air, keeping the winds back from the courtyard.

"No, I don't think so," Sokka said, picking himself up off of the ground as Zuko reached the carriage and started climbing the ropes. "We could have used you about two minutes ago."

"Sorry. I was trying to calm Kya down when Bumi said the balloon was going to blow up," Aang said and then furrowed his brow, watching Zuko. "Is he okay?"

Zuko was shouting something, gesturing for help. It was at that moment that Sokka remembered that he'd seen someone else in the carriage with Zuko. "Someone's in the carriage. Keep that wind out, Aang!"

He didn't wait for Aang to reply as he tore off across the courtyard. Several of the Acolytes were grabbing the snapped ropes, trying to untangle them to tie the balloon down again.

"Zuko!" Sokka called, putting his foot down on a rope and scrambling up onto the side of the tipped carriage. He was just in time to see Zuko bring his elbow down into one of the windows, smashing it in with a rain of glass. The Fire Lord broke the rest of the jagged chunks of glass around the frame, slicing his hand open in the process. He ignored the blood as it welled up in his palm. Instead, he thrust his arm into the window and grabbed the hand that reached up for him.

"Sokka, give me a hand," Zuko said as he scrambled over to help. He caught the other arm that reached out of the window and together the two men pulled a lithe figure up and out onto the side of the carriage.

Sokka let go of the woman's hand as they all went sprawling, the woman half on top of both of them. She was breathing hard, her reddish brown hair windswept, unadorned face covered with blood on one side from a slice in her hairline. Her blue eyes danced with excitement.

Suki let out a breath and then laughed. "Well, that was fun!"


	3. Chapter Two

**PART ONE: LETTING GO**

* * *

**CHAPTER TWO:**

"Are you okay?" Zuko asked, reaching out a hand to touch the bloody cut on Suki's hairline. He pulled back at the last instant, glancing at Sokka and then back at Suki.

"I'm fine. Come on, let's get this bitch deflated and back on her belly," Suki said, swinging her legs over the side of the carriage and dropping to the ground. She staggered a little and put her hand to her head as Sokka and Zuko dropped down beside her.

"Hey, you took a hard hit to the head," Sokka said, touching her shoulder. She glanced up at him and pulled a tight-lipped smile.

"I'm fine," she said and stalked past him, pulling a knife out of her belt and slashing at the balloon. Hot air immediately whooshed out of the hole and within a few seconds the whole thing started to sag. "We can sew it back up later, Zuko, but right now it's just going to cause a lot of problems if we don't deflate immediately. How you holding up, Aang?"

Aang nodded from his position at the edge of the courtyard. Sweat was breaking out over his skin as he held back the wind and snow. Sokka noticed the way the snow was hitting their little sphere of air and bouncing off of it; it was starting to pile up in a circle around their little pocket. The snowstorm was quickly turning into a blizzard.

"I'm fine, Suki. You guys wanna get that thing tied down though? This isn't exactly easy," Aang called.

"Right," Zuko said, coming up beside him and grabbing one of the snapped guide ropes. "Sokka?"

Sokka tore his gaze away from Suki, who was slicing another hole in the red balloon. He glanced at Zuko and nodded, grabbing another rope as the rest of the Acolytes came over to their side of the tipped carriage and grabbed ropes.

"On three," Sokka said. "One, two, three!"

Sokka pulled, his feet digging into the slick cobblestones. The carriage tilted, wobbled for a second and then crashed back onto its smooth bottom. Another window cracked, and another one shattered, raining glass onto the cobblestones. The balloon was still deflating, sagging across the top of the carriage and draping over the side. The blade of the knife clenched between her teeth, Suki climbed up onto one of the broken window sills and then went to work hacking away at the tangled ropes with one hand.

"Tie her back up!" she called to the others as the ropes fell to the ground.

Sokka , Zuko and the others grabbed the ropes and together they got carriage tied to the ground. Sokka double, then triple-knotted his rope, and then did the same for the others. He finished tying the last one and looked up to see the Acolytes dragging the slashed and deflated balloon toward Appa's barn across the courtyard. Suki was still dangling off the side of the carriage, having cut the balloon completely free.

Sokka stood up, watching as Zuko came over and held out his hands. Suki said something to him and laughed, then caught his shoulders in her hands. Zuko lifted her free of the carriage and slowly lowered her down to her feet, a worried expression on his face.

A strange, twisting feeling hit his guts as he stopped dead in his tracks. His rope-burned hand clenched up as a lump rose in his throat and threatened to choke him.

"_Are _you okay?" Zuko said, reaching up and pushing Suki's hair back. He still had one hand on her waist.

"Of course I am. I'm tougher than I look, you know," she said to him in a low voice.

Zuko smiled a little and said, "Trust me, I know."

Suki laughed and then blinked, as if startled. She glanced around, caught Sokka's eye for a moment and then flushed. Her hands dropped from Zuko's shoulders as she gestured to Aang, whose arms were shaking with the need to release the sphere of air keeping the winds back. "Come on!"

Shaking out of his thoughts, Sokka glanced around and gestured to the remaining Acolytes, some of whom were grabbing the luggage from the carriage and toting it toward the main house. "Get in! It's about to get windy again!"

The Acolytes didn't need any further prompting and disappeared back into the buildings they'd first come running from. Sokka jogged toward Aang and nodded at him.

Aang dropped the sphere and the wind came rushing back with a deathly cold blast that nearly swept them off of their feet. The glass in the windows rattled as it thundered past them, sweeping snow and ice into the open doorway. Aang was the last in, his orange robes swirling around him as he skidding to a stop in the hallway. Sokka grabbed the door and slammed it shut, throwing the lock home to keep the wind from grabbing it again.

He let out a breath as Aang wiped at the sweat on his tattooed brow and sagged against the wall. They all looked bedraggled, windswept and red-cheeked. Sokka was becoming more and more aware of the rope burn in his palms. He really wished he'd thought to put on gloves now, but he was in better shape than Suki. The blood on her forehead was starting to drip into her eyes.

"Come on, there's a fire going in the living room and better light. I'll patch you guys up. I'm the sure the kids are eager to see you, especially after watching all the excitement. We'll probably never get Bumi to bed now," Aang said, gesturing for the others to follow him. Sokka pushed off of the wall, standing back, watching as Suki and Zuko followed Aang, shoulder to shoulder. Zuko gestured for Suki to enter the room before him, and his hand lifted, resting on the small of her back for the briefest of moments.

Sokka's arms crossed as he stood in the hallway, biting down on the inside of his cheek. There wasn't a lot going through his mind at the moment, other than a growing suspicion that he didn't like in the least. The twisty feeling was still wrenching at his guts.

Something weird was going on. Something he hadn't seen coming.

His hand smashed into the wall and he followed the others into the living room to find Katara and Aang arguing again.

"The midwife said no healing until after the baby's born!" Aang said as Katara crossed her arms over her chest.

"I'm better at it than you are!"

"Of course you are, but you don't need to disturb the baby. Please?"

"Katara, really, it's not that bad. Aang'll do just fine," Suki said kindly, sitting down on the floor in front of Katara's couch, pulling a squirming and giggling Kya into her lap. She cuddled her close and the little girl pointed to the cut on Suki's forehead.

"You got a boo-boo, Aunt Suki!"

"I took a little roll in the balloon, but I'll be okay. Your daddy's gonna heal me," Suki explained with more patience than Sokka had expected for someone who had nearly went over the side of a cliff.

"I'm gonna be a healer too! Once I'm old enough."

"I know! And you're gonna be the cutest little Waterbender I've ever seen!" Suki said as she tickled the little girl. Kya let out a belly laugh and wrapped her arms around Suki's neck as Aang bent water from a sweating pitcher on the side table and sent it, glowing, over the cut on Suki's forehead. Suki let out a sigh and relaxed into the cool relief of the healing water.

Sokka, still standing in the doorway, watched as Zuko crouched down in front of Katara, who was still looking unhappy at having her healing powers rejected. Bumi was chattering away to Zuko and clinging to his back like a lemur-bat. Zuko hitched Bumi into a more comfortable position and then took Katara's hand and kissed it.

"You look beautiful, Katara. Motherhood always becomes you," he said formally.

"Right. I'm as big as Appa, my feet are so swollen that none of my shoes fit and I have to pee every five minutes. I don't feel beautiful. Plus, _that one_," she said pointedly glaring at Aang who was perched beside her on the couch, still healing Suki, "seems to think I can't do anything for myself."

"Don't play the sympathy card with Zuko," Aang said and met Zuko's amused gaze. "He already knows the healers put you on bed rest. For your own good. It's the only way they could make sure you'd slow down."

"Keep it up and you'll be sleeping on the couch. For _your _own good," Katara mumbled, making Zuko and Suki chuckle.

"Listen to him, Katara," Zuko said, reaching out and patting her expansive stomach. "I know you well enough to know you hate being mothered."

"It's usually the other way around," Sokka piped up, making Suki turn toward him. She smiled a little and quickly looked back at Aang.

"Healers make terrible patients, I've heard," Zuko said and stood, Bumi still clinging to his back.

"Oh sure, gang up on the pregnant lady," she muttered and sank back against the pillows, arms crossed over her chest. She sighed and then glanced at Suki and then Zuko. "You guys came here together?"

Sokka didn't miss the way Zuko's face went red, or the way Suki's smile tightened a little. They glanced at one another and then over at Sokka, then quickly away.

"Uh… Yeah."

"Actually, we met at Red Sand Island. I stopped for the night because of the weather and we just happened to run into each other," Zuko said quickly as Suki nodded in agreement.

"Saved me a pricey boat ride with some shady-looking pirate-types," Suki, another smile flashing across her face as the healing water bathed her face in blue light. "Of course, Zuko nearly got us killed on the way in."

"I keep telling you that you're going to crash that thing one of these days," Aang said. "Sky bison is the only way to travel by air. Everything else is just a death trap. I'm not surprised you nearly ended up in Yue Bay!"

"Actually, Suki was driving this time," Zuko said, swinging Bumi around to the front. The child squirmed and he put him down and he started bouncing off of the walls again, reenacting the war balloon's wild tumble across the courtyard.

"I insisted," she said with a lazy grin, letting Kya crawl out of her lap and curl up next to her. Her little thumb tucked into her mouth and she sucked on it, her eyelids drooping closed. Sokka had never seen a child who could fall asleep as fast and as easily as Kya could. "So, is Toph here yet?"

Sokka flinched and glanced out the window. It was getting darker outside, and the wind was howling like a wild beast, snow making little hissing noises as it slapped the glass. It was piling up already; soon the whole island would be covered and if the temperature kept falling, the ferries to and from the island would stop for fear of ice in the bay. Winters in Republic City could be just as nasty as in the two Poles. The storms were certainly more unpredictable.

"Not yet," Katara said, glancing at the window too. A worried expression crossed her face as she shifted in place on the couch. "I hope she doesn't get snowed in somewhere. I really want her here for the birth."

"When do you think you'll go into labor?" Suki asked, gesturing toward Katara's belly.

"I don't know. Could be a week from today, could be within the next minute. I was early with Bumi, and late with Kya. Maybe this one will do me the courtesy of arriving on time?"

"I love punctuality in a baby," Suki said with another easy grin and then glanced up at Aang, who withdrew the water and peered at the cut on her forehead. "How does it look?"

"It's healing closed. I don't think it'll scar either."

"What about her skull?" Zuko asked as Suki picked up Kya, cradling the dozing child against her chest as she got to her feet. She rapped on her other temple with her knuckles.

"Tough nut to crack. I feel better already," she said and pushed Zuko toward Aang. "Your turn."

"Sit," Aang commanded the Fire Lord, who obeyed with a roll of his eyes.

"Is she asleep?" Katara asked Suki as Aang got more water and went to work on Zuko's cut palm. Sokka tucked his fingers into his palms, hiding the rope burns. Suki glanced at Kya's little face and then nodded. "Could you put her bed for me? Sokka? Help Suki, would you?"

Katara caught his gaze and gave him an encouraging nod. He nearly groaned. Great. His sister was trying to play matchmaker. Again.

"Sure," he said shortly and gestured for Suki to follow him. She hesitated, glancing down at her feet for a second, and then took a deep breath and followed him out the door and into the hallway. Sokka glanced back and saw Zuko watching them with a closed expression on his blue-lit face.

Suki followed him down the hallway, humming lightly to Kya, rubbing her back as they climbed the stairs. He could feel Suki's gaze on his back. The air was filled with tension, but he wasn't exactly sure of its origin.

All of the things he'd imagined himself doing or saying when he saw her had evaporated like steam. He'd thought their reunion would be warm and friendly, full of hugs, maybe a passionate kiss or two. He'd even thought that it would be awkward at first. Awkward he could handle.

What he hadn't anticipated was that Suki would barely be able to meet his gaze.

Or that she would be sleeping with Zuko.


	4. Chapter Three

**PART ONE: LETTING GO**

* * *

**CHAPTER THREE:**

_They're sleeping together._

That thought seeped into his active thoughts and he realized he'd known it out in the courtyard. He knew Suki and Zuko well enough to catch the subtle signals of their bodies. Zuko wasn't that open with anyone as a general rule, and Suki… Well, years of experience in that field told him without a doubt how she acted around the person she was sleeping with.

He wasn't sure how to feel about this. Jealous? Probably a lot, once he got past his initial shock. Upset? Possibly. Confused? Absolutely. Gutted? He wasn't sure. Betrayed? He considered it for a savage moment, a surge of anger in him as he brought his foot down on the top step with a little more force than necessary

He didn't know why, but he'd just assumed that once they'd broken up, Suki would still be pining for him. Wondering when they'd get back together, refusing to even look at another man. Certainly not sleeping with one of his best friends.

All of the scenarios he'd run in his head had involved tearful reunions and kisses, or him being overwhelmed by how much he was in love with her. Or him gently letting her down because he had realized he wasn't in love with her anymore.

He hadn't anticipated her barely speaking to him, flirting with Zuko, or the odd sensation that he had lost something important, something he could never get back. There was no clarity, no sudden understanding. Just a sad kind of acceptance at his own stupidity. His treacherous heart didn't soar. It just flopped, sickened and sore.

He felt like a complete and total moron, absolutely naïve and utterly ashamed of himself. A year was a long time, especially a year of no contact with someone. Of _course_ she'd moved on. Why wouldn't she have? What reason had he given her not to? His silence had said it all.

_I'm an idiot. I'm a stupid, self-centered idiot. An asshole of the highest order_, he thought with a bitter kind of disgust as he pushed open the door to Kya's bedroom and held it for Suki. She stepped past him, still humming to his niece. She crossed the room and gently tucked her into bed, a little smile on her face.

"Goodnight, my little waterbaby," Suki said and kissed Kya's pudgy cheek. Kya huffed out a breath and relaxed into the warm blankets as Suki continued to hum to her, patting her back. Sokka walked over to the bed and stood beside her.

"She looks just like Katara did at that age," he said, watching Kya's eyelashes fluttering against her cheeks.

"She's beautiful," Suki said with a sad smile. "I wish I could have ten just like her."

There was something about the wistfulness in her voice; a pointed sadness that caught Sokka just behind his heart. Guilt rode hard through his nervous system and he withdrew the hand he'd been about to put on her shoulder.

He was suddenly remembering their last fight, the one that had broken them up. She'd been crying, something Suki almost never did. The sight of her tears had unnerved him, made him defensive, a position he'd regretted ever since. She'd wanted something from him he hadn't been ready to give her. Children, a family, a life not split between their two homes. Marriage.

It had scared him, thinking of himself living Aang's life, trying to live up to his sister's example. Being a father. It made him weak at the knees. He didn't think he could do it, didn't think he was responsible enough, good enough. Suki had deserved so much better than him, and his cowardly indecision. He'd let her walk away. He kept telling himself that things would go back to normal. That they'd get back together after some time apart to clear their heads.

But it hadn't happened. He'd broken things past the point of repair and on some level he'd known it. It was that thought, jammed like a knife in the back of his head, all tangled up with his feelings for Toph, that had stopped him from going to her that day on Kyoshi Island. Why hadn't he realized it then? He saw it so clearly now, as if the knots around his heart had suddenly been severed.

_So arrogant to think I could keep her…when she needs more than what I can give her. How blind was I? How selfish? How in denial about how I really felt? About where my heart really is… I had my chance to get Suki back that day on the island and I chose to walk away. _

He had already moved on, something he had known on some level, but hadn't wanted to really acknowledge. That would have made it real, final. And he would have had nothing keeping him from pursuing the woman he had managed to catch one night in Ba Sing Se, the woman who had been haunting him ever since.

_Damn. Damn it all._

"This is one time the boomerang isn't coming back, isn't it?" he said sadly, startling her into looking up at him. Their gazes met and he saw tears and confusion in her eyes.

"What?"

"I lost you, didn't I? The night we broke up. I lost you back then and I was too stupid to realize it. Too damned sure that you were going to go on loving me forever when I had absolutely nothing to offer you anymore. And I was definitely too stupid to realize that maybe this wasn't what I wanted anymore."

"Sokka…"

"I just assumed you'd be waiting for me. I'm so fucking… How arrogant can I get, you know?" he mused out loud.

"Don't curse around the baby," Suki said, gesturing to Kya, who turned over in her bed, still asleep. She had stuck her thumb back into her mouth.

"She's going to ruin her smile doing that," Sokka said, reaching down and gently tugging her thumb out of her mouth. Kya immediately jammed it back in and Suki smiled.

"Stubborn."

"Family trait, I guess," he said turned his head to meet her gaze again. Suki looked as lost as he felt. "Come on, I don't want to wake her up."

She nodded and let him take her hand. He led her out into the hallway and she gently closed the door behind them. He let out a shaky breath and studied her face.

She was beautiful; a fact that time and distance had done little to diminish in his memories. Even so, looking at her was like trying to look at the hot desert sun. She diminished everything near her.

Her wind-stirred hair fell to her shoulders in waves. It was longer than he'd ever seen her wear it, longer even than it had been when he'd secretly watched her on Kyoshi Island. It suited her, softened her in ways that he'd never seen. The years hadn't softened her body, however. She was still as fit and trim and as deadly capable as she'd ever been. She was like silk in the wind, every movement fluid and graceful, but hiding the strength that was hers alone. She was a warrior in the truest sense of the word, and she was no less beautiful for it. No less feminine. No less alluring and sexy.

Other memories drifted across his mind, potent memories of her body against his, her lips, the fierce and teasing kisses that were her trademark, that he had never thought to go without in his life. That he had found himself missing on more than one long, lonely night. Even now, that need stirred in him, but it was a ghost of itself, an echo of times long past. That was over and done now, and he knew it.

An ache took hold of his twisted insides and he swallowed against the weight of time and memory, his mistakes and regrets.

A stark sadness lingered behind her blue eyes, reminding him again of that night, when her tears had scorched red rivers in her cheeks and she had pushed away from him, untethering herself from the rock he had become, unable to move him, to get past his defenses, to make him see how much she was hurting.

"I'm sorry," he said, knowing it wasn't adequate, that he couldn't bridge the gap. Not anymore. "For everything. I don't think I ever understood. I mean, _really _understood what kept going wrong with us until now. I'm an idiot."

"I know you are," she said, flashing him a cheeky grin that faded as she reached out and took his hand. ""It's okay. _I'm _okay."

"No. I shouldn't have done that to you. I shouldn't have just disappeared on you for a year."

She shook her head, squeezing his hand. "I'm glad you did though. I needed space. And time to…you know…"

"Get over me?"

"Yeah," she said sadly, looking down at their hands. "Yeah, I needed to do that. We both needed to do that, Sokka. You know that, right?"

"Yeah. I guess I kinda did. Just…didn't think you'd do it. Maybe a part of me just hoped you wouldn't," he mumbled, feeling uneasy. The twisted feeling in his stomach was starting to unknot itself, loosening its hold on him far easier than he'd thought it would. "Didn't think I'd done it, either. But… I think I _did_ somewhere along the way and didn't quite realize it because I was being stupid about everything. About you and her and me and…"

"Huh?"

"Sorry," he said, reaching up and touching his temple. "It's kind of a mess in here right now."

"It always was," she said with a soft smile and then squeezed his hand again. "I'm not angry, you know. I was at first. But what happened was for the best."

"Yeah," he said and then said rawly, "I missed you though."

"I missed you too," she whispered and a tear rolled down her cheek. "Is this going to be weird? The two of us being around each other again? I was afraid it would be weird."

"I don't know. It _does_ feel a little weird."

"Yeah," she agreed wryly. "For a lot of reasons, I guess. Being just friends with you is…definitely not something I can just _do_, you know? There's always going to be this…"

But there were no words for it. He understood anyway, the magnitude of it all, the history, the memories, the hurt and the bitterness, the _could have been's_, and _should have been's_ and _never will be's_.

"I know," he commiserated. "You're _Suki._ You're…you were my girl."

"But I'm not a girl anymore," she said gently, pulling her hand away from his. He let her go, in every way that counted. He felt a bit adrift, but somehow the pain he was expecting didn't come. Hadn't this already happened a year ago? "We should get back. They're going to wonder what's taking so long."

She started to walk away, but he stopped her dead in her tracks. "You mean, _Zuko's_ going to wonder what you and I are up to, all alone together."

Suki's shoulders stiffened and she turned smartly around to face him. "What?"

The corners of his mouth turned up into a satisfied smirk at her reaction. Oh, he'd definitely called it. He didn't know if the panic in her eyes pleased him, or if it made the knot tighten just a little bit more. It was jealousy, he knew, and he accepted and embraced it. Of course he was jealous, no matter how things had turned out, or where his heart belonged now. She was still Suki, after all. She still ruled a part of his heart and always would.

And for _some reason_ the idea of tormenting her (and Zuko when he got his hands on him) seemed to be too tempting a morsel to pass up. After all, hadn't they both lied to his face in the living room? Didn't he deserve to know the truth about their relationship? Wasn't it even considered slightly honorable of Zuko to run it by him? Given him a head's up, at the very least.

_After all, if I was in a relationship with Zuko's ex-girlfriend, I'd definitely let him know_, he thought to himself, feeling slighted. Nevermind the fact that Mai was happily married, with two children. It would just be _polite._

A savage thrust of perverse joy at seeing her squirm filled him.

"Come on, Suki, I know you. And you're a terrible liar," he said, leaning against the wall and jammed his fists into his pockets. He closed his hands around the rope burn, realizing how much it was starting to hurt. He hung on to the pain though. It was oddly reassuring. "Deny it, I dare you."

Suki's face flushed and she opened her mouth, probably to tell him off, but instead she drew herself up and arched an eyebrow at him.

"Fine. We've been seeing each other for about three months, are you happy now?" she huffed and crossed her arms over her chest.

"And how did that happen?"

She blew out a breath, stirring a lock of hair that had fallen into her eyes. "He asked me to be his bodyguard on a tour of the Fire Nation. Things…just _happened._ We didn't plan it."

He smiled a little to himself. "Boy, do I know that one."

She tossed him a quizzical look, but he shook his head and pushed off of the wall. He pursed his lips and approached her. She stiffened; her posture defensive. "And are you happy with him?"

The quirk of her lips betrayed her.

"It's very new, okay? It's different from what you and I had. It was something I needed. _Zuko_ is someone I need in my life right now. We're trying not to put labels on it."

"But he makes you happy?"

"Yes. Very."

"Why did you lie? Poorly, may I remind you," he asked, though he knew the reason, of course.

"We were trying to keep it between the two of us for now. And we didn't want to hurt you. I warned him you'd see right through our story."

"Like a window."

"Jerk. You are loving this, aren't you?"

"Just a little," he said, flashing a grin at her that wasn't forced in the slightest. "But really, you didn't have to worry about me. I wish you guys the best. I mean, I'm going to tear Zuko a new asshole, but I'm happy for you."

"Sokka!"

He chuckled a little and kissed the top of her head before she could stop him. "Really, I'm okay, Suki. With everything. Now we'd better hurry up or your boyfriend's going to start worrying." He let her go and started down the hallway. He felt her eyes on him as he started to jog down the stairs. Another savage thrill went through him he stopped on the stairs. _I'm not a nice man_, he thought and then called back over his shoulder, "By the way, just a head's up: I'm in love with Toph."

"…..WHAT?!"

Sokka ignored her, a smirk hitting his lips as he took the stairs two at a time. _Yep. Totally and completely okay with it._


	5. Chapter Four

**PART TWO: WELCOME HOME**

* * *

**CHAPTER FOUR:**

Snow creaked under her feet, muffling her vision. Everything felt dim and distant, coated in ice, the cold seeping up through the thin soles of her shoes. She hated winter. Snow absorbed vibrations and made her feel lost in a sea of nothingness.

Gritting her teeth, she dug a few inches into the snow and connected once again to the cobblestoned street with the tip of her frozen toe. The street came into focus with a clarifying jolt. For the first time, she realized that there were several people on the street around her, going about their business. One man was shoveling the sidewalk in front of a shop across the street. A woman walked past her, the smell of fire about her as she kept herself warm with her chi.

Toph blew out a breath that was dampened by the scarf she'd pulled around her face. Her fingers were numb and her feet were tingling; it had been hours since she'd felt warm. A pang of jealousy for the Firebender who had walked by hit her as she studied the street, trying to get her bearings.

Republic City had changed in the months since she'd been gone, something she should have realized. The city was growing every day. New buildings were springing up at every corner, streets growing out like veins from the thriving city center. Everything felt new and polished and the smell of fresh paint seemed to permeate the air, along with an air of excitement that she had nearly forgotten. There was just something about Republic City, something vibrant and electric that infected the soul and set the skin humming..

For the first time in months, she felt a sense of coming home. A strange as the streets had become in just a few months, they still felt comfortable, as if she were being welcomed back with open arms.

Now, if only the snow would stop.

_And if only my stomach would calm down. Fat chance of that though_, Toph thought to herself as she stepped off of the sidewalk and crossed the street, Bending the cobblestones a few inches up out of the snow, so that her earth-sense wouldn't be impaired again. Wagons had carved slick ruts in the snow and she followed them for a block, turning toward the city's center with unwavering surety.

Nervousness made her feel jittery, and heartburn seared her throat in churning waves. What was she going to say to them? How could she possibly explain? What would they think of her? What would _Sokka_ think of her?

And did she care?

Even worse, what would she do when she saw him with Suki? They were probably engaged. Stupidly, happily in love. She had been was just a mistake, something to be swept under a rug and forgotten. Isn't that just what she'd told him? She just wanted to throw up. Again.

_Story of my life. Utterly alone and harboring a fugitive. What a mess._

Tears froze at the corners of her eyes as she followed the tracks toward the docks. She refused to cry. Not again.

_There was never a choice for him, and you know that. You had that night and that's all you can ever have. You have to get over him. What other choice do you have now?_

Easier said than done. She'd spent six solid months trying to forget the way Sokka's voice had vibrated through her body when he'd told her that he loved her. _Idiot. He didn't know what he was saying that night. He probably even thought that he meant it. You knew it then and you know it now. He's come to his senses by now and all you're going to do is make it weird for the two of you. For _everyone.

Her stomach lurched a little as she felt a wagon slowly sloughing through the half-frozen wheel-ruts. Clutching her middle, a tiny echo pinging through her body, she stepped aside and got her bearings again. The streets seemed more familiar now and the smell of new paint had faded a little. She could smell the stink of the fisheries near the port and as she reached into the frozen earth, she felt the subtle slope of the land as it reached out to meet the sea.

Hopefully the ferries out to Air Temple Island were running or she'd be delayed another night. The bad weather coming down from the mountains the night before had forced her to find shelter and she'd spent all night holed up in a seedy tavern a few miles from the city.

It had taken her all day to walk into the city; several feet of snow had fallen overnight and the road crews had barely made a dent in the roads by late afternoon. Though she'd stopped in at several shops to warm up on her journey, she was starting to feel frozen and the ache in her feet was becoming painful. Her teeth were starting to chatter as she tried to hide in her large green coat, but it was doing nothing to keep the biting wind from cutting through her.

Lost in her thoughts, she didn't realize she was being followed until she was nearly at the docks. A prickling sensation on the back of her neck told her that there were eyes on her, and the vibrations, muffled though they were though the snow, pinpointed three heavy pairs of footsteps following close behind her.

She wasn't surprised. There was a thriving criminal underground in the city, so much so that it had necessitated her founding of the metal-bending police force to combat it. The more organized gangs liked to rob unsuspecting victims they found alone on the streets after dark.

Night had just started to fall and she probably looked like an especially sweet treat, blind, cold and weary. Clearly the weather wasn't keeping them indoors tonight.

She smiled a little to herself. Doubtless they thought she was an easy mark. They probably had no idea who she was, or what she was.

_Just try it, idiots. I haven't had a good fight in days and I could use a little fun right now._

She purposefully slowed her steps, trying to appear lost and a lot less capable. No need to tip them off. If they used their brains a little, they'd recognize the Chief of Police. Despite her six months leave from the force, surely they'd recognize her. How many blind Earthbenders could there be in the city, after all?

_Then again, maybe that's giving them too much credit,_ she thought wryly as she felt the vibrations of them closing in on her. She tightened her hand into a fist, feeling the earth beneath her awakening, yearning toward her like a dog begging to be petted.

She could feel their heartbeats quickening as they moved in for the kill, rushing her as she reached the docks.

"Hey, lady! What's in the bag?" one of them sneered as they crowded her, stopping her in her tracks. She gasped, lifting her blind eyes so that they could see them and think her weak. "Who are you? Please, leave me alone!"

She felt cold steel in their hands, knives by the thinness of them. The metal sang to her, quivering in their hands as she flexed her power. They didn't notice though, too intent on the fear on her face and the lumpy contents of the pack on her back. Dirty and wet though the journey had made her, her clothing still marked her as someone with money. Or at least enough money to pay for their drinks and their women tonight.

"We're just some friendly locals. See, it's not safe to walk through this neighborhood at night," one of them said, his breath smelling like garlic as he leaned in to her. She felt the knife slide along her cold cheek and then hook on her scarf. He tugged it down and cold air blasted her in the face. "Especially for a pretty girl like you. Grab her bag."

"Please don't hurt me!" she said as she dug her toes into the street. Once past the snow, everything focused again and she felt the earth buckle, eagerly waiting for her commands.

One of the men grabbed the bag off of her shoulder with a painful yank. She let it go. It would be easier to fight without it, after all. The one with the garlic breath wrapped his hand up in the front of her coat and, using the tip of the knife beneath her chin, tilted her head back a little.

"You blind, pretty girl?"

"Y-yes…" she said, listening to the other two men going through her pack. She realized with a start that there was another person in the street with them. Their heart was beating hard as they watched the robbery, but they weren't making a move to help her.

That was okay. She didn't need help.

"You look kinda familiar…" Garlic Breath said slowly. She could practically hear the gears in his thick skull grinding, trying to place her face. She was almost as well-known as the Avatar and the Fire Lord, after all. "Wait… You're…"

Toph dropped the scared act and pulled a wickedly sharp grin as Garlic Breath backed up a step.

"I'd run if I were you," she said casually, alerting the other two robbers that something was wrong. She felt them look up from her pack. "But you won't get far."

"Shit…" Garlic Breath breathed. "She's a cop!"

That was all the warning he managed before she gripped the earth and shaped it around his feet, trapping him in place. He gave a cry as the others dropped her pack and stood.

"Fuck! RUN!" one of them said, panicking and taking off down the street. Toph turned, rooting herself in the earth with a slam of her feet. She followed his progress across the cobblestoned street for several feet and then stirred the stones like a soup. His foot sank into the ground and stayed there as she slammed it closed around him. He cried out in pain as the stones tightened on his fragile ankle bones.

Garlic Breath screamed something unkind about her mother and she whipped around on him just in time to feel the knife leave his hand. The metal shivered in the air, but she lifted her hand, stopping it in mid-air. With a twist of her wrist, she flipped it over and sent it back at him. He gave a cry as it buried to the hilt in his thigh.

"FUCK! YOU BITCH!"

She felt vibration on her left and turned to face the third would-be robber. He didn't have a knife in his hand, but she could feel the hard slam of his heart as he pulled out what felt like a wooden staff. He took a swing at her, but she sent a large brick slamming into his head. It knocked him into the snow, the staff clattering out of his hand and rolling into the gutter. He groaned once and then lay still.

She could hear Garlic Breath breathing in hard gasps, his body shaking as he tried to pull the knife out of his leg. She ignored him and turned back to the robber who had tried to run. He was attempting to pull his foot out of the ground. She tightened the earth around it with a squeeze of her fist. He cried out in pain.

"Please, lady! There's your stuff! Don't hurt me!" he pleaded as she approached him.

"I should arrest you, that's what I should do. How many women have you three terrorized on this street? Don't answer that," she said with impatience. "What I should really do is crush your foot until it resembles ground meat."

"What? You can't…"

"Yes, I can. How are you going to stop me? Your foot belongs to me right now, sweetheart. I can do whatever I want with it."

"_Please!_ Please, don't!"

"How about we do this?" she mused, yanking the knife out of his hand from three feet back. It sailed into her palm and she waved it at him with a smile. "How about you take your stupid, smelly friends back to whatever sty you call home. You get decent jobs. Maybe a bath. And you stop shaking down women for money on _my_ streets."

"S-sounds reasonable…"

"Because if I find either you or your friends robbing anyone else, I'm going to arrest you. _After_ I crush both of your feet and balance a boulder on your little balls. You're going to piss your pants in three different directions when I get through with you, you little worm. You understand me?"

"Yes, ma'am!" he squeaked, his voice breaking.

"Good," she said shortly and then released both his Garlic Breath's feet. Garlic Breath sagged in place, still gasping in pain. "Now take these pieces of shit and get out of my sight."

The third robber grabbed his unconscious friend beneath the armpits and dragged him down the street away from her. Garlic Breath limped past her, hesitating for a split second. The knife was still in his leg.

"Th…this…isn't…over…b-bitch…"

"It was over before it even began," Toph drawled and twisted the knife in his leg a little. He cried out and his knees buckled. He hit the ground on all fours. "Whoops. You're bleeding. You should probably do something about that before it festers_._"

Garlic Breath cursed beneath his ragged breath, got shakily to his feet and then ran-limped away from her, the sweet-iron smell of blood mingling with the pungent aroma of his dinner. Toph chuckled to herself, palming the third robber's knife with a little smile. She felt them round the corner, their footsteps fading with distance until she couldn't pick them up any longer. She picked up her pack and slung around her shoulder.

"Chumps."

After a few moments, she became aware of the aroused heartbeat of the person standing against the building behind her, nearest to the docks. They hadn't moved during the altercation and she turned her attention on them with annoyed interest.

There was something familiar about the beat of the man's heart, and the shape of him beneath his lumpy winter clothes. His scent battled with the smells of fish, salt water and tar as she heard him laugh the moment she turned her attention toward him.

She knew that laugh. Knew it better than she knew her own.

"Sokka…"


	6. Chapter Five

**PART TWO: WELCOME HOME**

* * *

**CHAPTER FIVE:**

"What are you doing here?" she breathed as she felt Sokka push away from the building and start toward her.

""I was worried when you didn't show up last night. I've been waiting here all afternoon. I figured the weather delayed you," Sokka said in his rumbling voice. Her mouth suddenly felt dry, her knees watery. Her heart thudded hard against her ribcage, battering itself to pieces. She swallowed hard, trying to wet her throat.

"I spent the night in a tavern a few miles out of the mountains. Took me all day to walk into the city. The roads are nearly impassable."

"You do look half-frozen," he mused, his hands rearranging her coat and pulling her damp scarf down. The cold air hit her lips, but she felt his hot breath whisper against her aching skin the next moment. A shiver went through her as he caught her gloved hands in his, rubbing at them.

"Thanks for your help back there, by the way."

Sokka chuckled softly, and the sound of it shot little thrills down into her toes and back to her head, which swam a little, as if she might not be getting enough air all of a sudden. She'd thought she was prepared to see him again, that she'd hardened her heart to him. All it had taken was one laugh from him, though. Just that one sound, and she was right back where she'd been six months ago, her tail tucked between her legs as she'd run from Ba Sing Se and the reality of the situation.

Damn him…

"I knew you could handle it. Besides, I always did like watching you fight," he murmured. "Why didn't you arrest them?"

"Because the station is ten blocks away and I'm cold, wet and tired."

"So lazy," he teased her and she smacked his shoulder, a grin unforced on her face.

"Shut up."

"Do you have any idea how much I've missed you?" he said unexpectedly, making the little huffing noise she'd come to associate with his smile.

Her knees felt weak and her stomach was flip-flopping. She couldn't feel anything through her feet, but she could hear the fishermen working on the icy dock ahead of them and the sounds of boat horns and rigging lashing in the wind. Somehow she'd imagined their reunion a lot differently. She'd planned on being cool and distant and acting like seeing him again didn't affect her in the slightest. Anything to preserve her dignity.

She didn't feel cool and distant though, now that he had abruptly swooped back into her life. She was so unprepared for the excited thump of his heartbeat, for his scent, for the sound of his smile and the heat of his skin. She felt as in control as a pebble tumbling down a mountain.

"I… I missed you too," she mumbled, dropping her face a little. _Change the subject. Now._ "So, am I too late? Did Katara have the baby yet?"

"No, at least she hadn't when I left this morning. She's on bed rest though, and she's taking it out on everyone else," Sokka said with an indulgent laugh. "She looks like she could pop any minute now and her back is killing her. When I left, Aang was on back rub duty." Sokka noticed the expression on her face before she shut it down. "Are you okay? You look a little… I don't know… Did those guys hurt you?"

The words stuck in her throat. He was going to find out sooner or later. She might as well do it now, except she just couldn't get the words out. She felt a dim sort of lurch of self-pity and then felt her lunch stirring, threatening to break free. She pushed the nausea down and shoved the self-pity aside. That wasn't her style and she'd been wallowing too much lately.

"No, they didn't. Sokka… I…" she trailed off and she felt his hand brush her hair back. She wanted to lean against his hand, to lose herself in the memories of that night, when they had belonged to each other. She knew better though. She always had. "I'm just cold and wet. I must look like a hobo."

"Actually, I think you look beautiful," he whispered in a raspy voice.

She hadn't expected him to say that either. It warmed her to her numb toes, despite the warnings firing off in her head. She sniffed a little, conscious of how drippy her nose was and how sweaty she was feeling beneath her heavy coat.

"No, I don't."

"Yeah, you do," he said with another huffing smile. "You're definitely a sight for these sore eyes. You've been gone too long. Where have you been?"

"Around. Did some traveling here and there. And I went to visit my parents after… Uh…" she faltered, the words dying in her dry mouth. She'd probed much too close to the festering wound they were both trying hard to ignore. Or at least she was.

"After you left me in Ba Sing Se," Sokka said, not giving her quarter. She flattened her mouth into a thin line.

"Yeah."

"Which was rude, by the way."

Her eyebrow arched at him and her hands dropped from his coat. "Well, I didn't see the point of delaying the inevitable. Better to rip the bandage off than pull it slow, you know?" she said in a tight voice, trying to remember her plan.

_Cool and detached. Pretend you don't care. Protect yourself. You're just going to get hurt. Again. You can't afford to be weak again. Not now. You have to be stronger than you've ever been. For the both of you._

"What was so inevitable, Toph?" he asked in a strange voice as she stepped back, trying to extricate herself from the warmth of his arms. The wind cut into her like a knife.

"Can we not do this here?" she bit, starting to walk away from him in the direction of the ferry. Sokka caught her hand though, tugging her toward him. She didn't struggle as he led her down the slippery dock in the opposite direction. "What are you doing? The ferry is that way."

"The ferry isn't running today. I brought my own boat," he called back over his shoulder as he led her toward the other end of the docks.

"You have a boat?"

"Yeah, I have a boat now," he bragged. "It's nothing fancy. Just a small sailboat. She's pretty though."

"I'm almost impressed," she snarked, and was satisfied by the huffing sound of his smile. She could hear the water lapping at the dock, and against a solid object directly in front of her. A sail was snapping in the wind nearby. It was starting to snow again; she could feel the wet flakes as they kissed her exposed skin.

"Shut up and get in the boat," he said, letting go of her hand. She heard him jump down into the boat with a muffled thump. He turned back to her with a shuffle. "Toss me your pack."

She slung her pack off of her shoulder, glad to be rid of its weight at last. She tossed it as hard as she could in the direction of Sokka's voice and was satisfied by the sound of it hitting him square in the face with an _oomph!_ She smirked as he dropped it onto the deck.

She edged forward, her hands outstretched. She felt utterly blind at the moment, as helpless as the robbers had thought she was, afraid of what was at the end of the slippery planks. All she needed to do was to miss the boat and tumble into the freezing cold water. That was just the sort of day she was having.

Sokka knew how she felt about boats though, and how she felt about not having the earth beneath her feet in general. She felt his hand close over hers with a reassuring grip, leading her forward.

Then his hand left hers and he grasped her waist, pulling her off of the dock and into the boat without even a grunt of effort. She didn't feel much better with the lurching boat beneath her feet, but it was better than teetering on the edge of the icy dock.

"I've got you," he rumbled as she clutched him for one moment, trying to get her sea legs beneath her. His breath was warm on her ear for one delicious moment.

"Dammit, don't do that," she said, feeling her face flushing.

"Do what?" he said, his hands tugging at her waist, bringing her up against him.

"You know what, Boat Guy," she said, her foot finding her pack as she lurched backward away from the heat of him. The boat rocked beneath them and she felt Sokka's hand on hers again. She allowed him to guide her over to a bench and she sat down on it with a decisive thump. Her stomach was not happy about the choppiness of the water.

_Don't puke, don't puke, don't puke…_

"What? Help you? It's okay to get help, Toph. Even you need it sometimes."

"That's not what I'm talking about and you know it," she said angrily as she listened to him untying ropes with a series of odd noises she couldn't work through.

"Do I?" Sokka mused as he pushed away from the dock with a grunt. They drifted into the bay. He was moving around, doing all manner of mysterious sailing things. After a few minutes she heard the sails unfurl with a snap and flinched as the wind immediately caught in them and they lurched forward with dizzying speed.

Silence fell over them as Sokka steered them out into the bay. A cold, fine spray of salt water tickled her frozen cheeks and iced up on her eyelashes. She shivered in place, trying not to vomit as the boat bobbed up and down in the waves. Sokka seemed too busy dealing with the boat to talk. Or maybe he could sense that she needed a moment to gather herself. Or that she might throw up if she opened her mouth.

With the wind at their back, it didn't take long before she felt the boat bump up against another dock. Sokka tied it up and slackened the sails. She started to stand, but he put a hand on her shoulder.

"Wait. We need to talk."

"About what?" she asked as he dropped into a seat in front of her.

"You know what."

_Damn him…why can't he just pretend it never happened? _

"Look, I'm not going to make it weird for you and Suki, okay?" she said with a venomous bite in her voice, going straight for the heart of the thing they'd been trying to avoid so far. _Cool and detached, my ass. _

"Oh, you're not, are you?" he asked in an amused voice.

"No," she spat, feeling off-kilter and not just because of the way the water was bumping against the hull of the boat. "How is she, by the way?"

"Oh, she's fine. She arrived last night."

"How nice for you."

"Yeah, it _was_ nice seeing her again," he said diffidently.

"Fantastic," she mumbled, clutching her rebellious stomach. She felt sick and for more reasons than one. "I'm so happy for you."

_When's the wedding? _she managed not to add bitterly, as her heart squeezed hard in her chest. _Calm, cool and distant. Don't let him know. Let him think you don't care. That you don't still feel the same way. _

Sokka took her hands. "Are you?"

He sounded amused, which sparked the anger she'd been keeping back with the barest shred of control.

"Of course. Why wouldn't I be? You and Suki belong together." She tried to smile, but her frozen face ached too much.

"There's only one problem, though," he said heavily, a slight tremor in his hands.

"What's that?" she asked around her thick tongue.

"Isn't it obvious?"

"Not to me."

"Well, if I wanted to be with her, I wouldn't be on this ship with _you_ right now, would I?"

"What?" Toph murmured after sitting there for several stunned seconds.

"You heard me."

"I did. Doesn't mean I believe it."

"Well, you should," Sokka said in a serious voice that was unlike him. "I've spent the last six months trying like hell to get you out of my head. Guess what? You're stuck in there like a tick, Beifong. I don't want to get over you."

"What about Suki? What about what I told you? You were supposed to marry her, you _idiot_," she asked in a voice so small the wind tried to snatch it away. "You were supposed to leave that night where it was. That was the plan. You agreed."

She felt him shrug. "I never agreed to that. Did you really think that was going to happen? That I'd settle down with Suki and forget what's between us?"

She had. And maybe that was what had hurt so much for all of these months. She had seen the outcome so clearly. She had never once doubted that he would come to his senses and swing back to Suki. The alternative had never entered her head, except in half-remembered dreams and stray thoughts when she let her guard down. Which wasn't often.

"You were supposed to."

"I couldn't. I'm in love with you, Toph," he said seriously and a fiery sort of blaze ignited in her chest, scorching her with undeserved hope. "I admit it, when you left me in Ba Sing Se I was really confused. I still had feeling for Suki, feelings I had to work through."

"And you have?"

"I realized last night that a part of me will _always_ love her, but that I'm not _in love_ with her anymore. What we had is long over. I want _you_, Toph. I want you to come back to Republic City for good and I want to be with you. "

"You don't mean that…" she whispered, feeling vulnerable in a way only he could make her feel. Sokka had always had a way of stripping away the tough layers she hid herself beneath, to dig until he found her weak spots. Her heartbeat and its little echo thundered out of control.

"Of course, I do," Sokka said earnestly and she felt him kneel in front of her as the boat rocked around them.

_But he doesn't know. He doesn't know that I'm not the same Toph I was six months ago… That I made a mistake that I can't ever erase… What will he think when I tell him? Why would he stick around after that? _

The snow was still coming down, kissing her skin. Not a thought was running through her head. She was shocked, numb. The blaze of hope in her chest was starting to spread to her limbs. Did he mean it? She had no doubt that he did.

"You're not with her?"

"No. Not since we broke up last year. It's over. There's only you…something I should have seen a long time ago. If you hadn't run from me, I probably would have. You're _everything_. Please tell me you still feel the same, Toph. Tell me I haven't messed this up."

"You haven't… I still… Sokka…" she stammered, surprised by the wetness in her eyes. But they weren't tears of happiness. She dropped her face and squeezed her pale eyes shut. "You shouldn't. You don't know… Dammit, there's something I have to tell you…and you should know it before you…"

But Sokka wasn't listening. He cupped her face and brought her in for a deep, dark, warm kiss that blazed through every argument, insecurity and fear raging through her.

Toph clung to him, kissing him back with everything in her, unable to stop. Tears broke free as her hands fisted in his coat. He moaned and cradled her against him. His arms were warm and solid. Reassuring. A harbor to shelter in. She couldn't stop. _Wouldn't._ Her traitorous heart demanded more and she gave it what it needed.

She wouldn't_, couldn't_ do it. Couldn't shatter the moment with the truth that had been digging into her like a knife-point for the past few weeks, driving fear and regret, shame and worry ahead of her like a whipped beast. She clung to him hard, knowing that it couldn't last.

After all, he wouldn't want her once he found out that she was pregnant.


	7. Chapter Six

**PART TWO: WELCOME HOME**

* * *

**CHAPTER SIX:**

Toph heard, rather than felt the footsteps coming toward Air Temple Island's dock. The smell of a burning torch accompanied two pairs of feet. Sokka broke off the kiss with a ragged exhale of breath against her wet lips. He nuzzled her cold nose with the briefest of caresses and then turned his head to face the newcomers.

"Huang. Mi-Chu. Look what I found at the Republic City docks."

"Welcome back to Air Temple Island, Chief Beifong," said what had to be one of the Air Acolytes in a respectful tone that in no way hinted at the fact that he'd just come upon a City Councilman making out with the Chief of Police. She appreciated it. She was already feeling confused enough.

"Thanks. It's good to be back," she said, though she wasn't completely convinced that that were true.

"Has my sister gone into labor yet?" Sokka asked them.

"Not yet. She had the cook delay dinner until your arrival. Shall I let her know that you've brought Chief Beifong?"

"Yeah. I'm starving. Tell her we'll see her at dinner, Huang."

"Yes sir. May we help carry Chief Beifong's bags to the house?" one of them asked.

"Thanks, but she didn't bring much. I can carry it. She's about frozen solid though. If you could go ahead and get her something warm to drink and have it waiting in her room I'd be really grateful and I'm sure the Chief would too," Sokka said easily, in a happy voice.

"Of course, sir." The two Acolytes walked off, leaving them alone again. He turned back to her.

"Come on. Let's go warm up." He squeezed her hand and stood smoothly to his feet, surefooted.

The heady taste of Sokka's mouth lingered on hers and she fought the urge to grab him and continue where they'd left off. The cold air blowing off of the Mo Ce Sea curbed that impulse though.

Sokka grabbed her bag, tossed it up on the dock, then stood and helped her to her feet. The sailboat swayed beneath her, but he held her steady until she found a more solid stance. Then he let her go and jumped up onto the dock.

She held out her hands and he picked her up out of the boat as smoothly as he'd put her in it. He didn't immediately let her go though. His forehead pressed against hers and she felt his fur-lined coat tickle her exposed skin.

"It _is_ good to have you back, you know."

She kissed him quickly and then said, "Come on, I'm freezing."

Sokka laughed and shouldered her pack, then followed her down the long dock toward the switchback path that led up to the Air Temple. The Air Acolytes had been busy clearing snow off of the path and she felt much better with earth beneath her feet again, able to see her surroundings in the only way she knew how. With the earth beneath her, she also felt less likely to throw up from motion sickness. Her nerves were still jumping though. She clutched her stomach, feeling the tiniest flutter of a heartbeat beneath her palm.

_You have to tell him, _she thought to herself as Sokka caught her gloved hand and lead her toward the main dormitory that housed Aang's family. _He has a right to know and you can't keep it a secret forever._

But everything in her wanted to delay that moment as much as possible.

Sokka led her across the courtyard, making sure she didn't trip over a tangle of ropes holding down what felt like one a Fire Nation balloon carriage. When she asked about it, he told her the story of how Zuko and Suki had arrived the night before and nearly ended up in the Bay. Finally, after what felt like forever, he opened a door, a blast of heat enveloping them as they stepped inside the temple and he immediately led her to the room she usually stayed in when she visited the island.

"I'm gonna get a hot bath and change into something warm," she explained at the door after Sokka had put her pack on the bed.

"Okay. I'll see you at dinner?"

"Yeah."

Sokka leaned in, kissing her cheek. "And afterwards…maybe you and I could talk a little more?"

There was a heavy weight in his voice and she felt memories slide over her in an arousing wave. She suddenly couldn't help but think of the way his body had felt beneath her fingertips, or the way his tongue had traced the curves of her body while a thunderstorm rattled the world around them. She shivered and it wasn't from the cold still clinging to her numb extremities.

She smiled a little. "Count on it."

He kissed her again, gently, his mouth feathering against hers. She wanted to sink against him, or pull him into the room and lay waste to the need rising beneath her skin. Instead, he pulled back and huffed a smile. Then he walked away, leaving her to slide the door closed and sink against it for a long moment as her heart raced.

Finally she pulled herself together and stripped out of her wet, snow and ice-encrusted clothing, flexing her fingers and toes to get feeling back in them. True to their word, the Acolytes had placed a steaming mug of strong mulled wine on the table. Naked and shivering, she grabbed it on the way to the bathing chamber, which felt hot and steamy as she walked inside.

She silently thanked the Acolytes, who had drawn a hot bath for her as well. She immediately put the wine down after taking a long drink and sank into the steaming water. Little by little, the knots in her shoulders loosened and the feeling came back into her fingers and toes. She stopped shivering as she took another deep drink and submerged herself all of the way, soaking her long hair. She came back up, tempted to just relax for a while longer. She knew if she did that she might fall asleep. Her stomach rumbled. It had been a long time since lunch. A lunch she'd thrown up into a snow bank just outside the city limits.

Her pregnancy had brought on a wave of morning sickness that seemed to be getting steadily worse. She hadn't been able to keep much down for the past few weeks. Her hand flattened on her belly, wondering how she'd look to the others. Would they be able to tell? The healer had said she was only two months along, not far at all. Her stomach still felt flat to her, but her breasts were tender and had been for weeks.

She could feel the tiny heartbeat vibrating through the water. She'd been able to pick up the miniscule vibration only a few days ago. It had amazed her and made everything scarily real.

She didn't know what to do. What _could_ she do?

_I'll just tell him the truth tonight and that'll be it. Better to get it over with now, before he regrets it. Before my heart takes another beating, _Toph thought resolutely as she washed her body and then shampooed her hair. Feeling much more human, and certainly warmer than she had been in days, she got out of the tub and threw on a warm shirt and pants. Then she brushed her waist-length hair and let it fall down her back. She was too tired to put it back up in its usual knot.

She found her way down to the dining hall by memory. She recognized the cadence of the hearts beating around the low table as well as she recognized her own. A keen ache took hold of her chest and she realized how much she'd missed her friends.

Aang was the first to greet her, pulling her into a warm, comforting hug. "Where have you been? We were so worried!"

"Sorry, I had to hoof it, Twinkle Toes. Not all of us have a flying fuzzball to get around on," she said warmly, giving him an extra hard squeeze.

"Toph!" It was Suki, who practically shoved Aang aside with her elbow and wrapped her up in a hug tight enough to crack ribs. "I'm so glad you're here!"

She tried to keep her face neutral, but her brow furrowed. There was something in Suki's voice. She wasn't lying—Toph had never actually known the Kyoshi Warrior to lie about anything—but there was a measure of bright cheerfulness in her greeting that seemed odd to her. As if Suki were a little _too glad_ to see her.

Suki let go as Zuko pulled her into a brief and unyielding hug, which was nothing unusual. She could usually count on Zuko's general awkwardness in all situations. She decided to have a little fun with him as she pulled back and gripped his bicep. "Hey, Hot Pants, you been working out?"

"Uh… No?"

"Yeah, I can tell," she said teasingly.

Suki and Aang stifled a laugh at Zuko's elbows. The Fire Lord turned on Suki quickly. She couldn't imagine what the look on his face was, but Suki's voice was indulgent.

"Don't listen to her. She's just mad that she's about three feet tall and weighs a hundred pounds soaking wet."

"Hey, I'm three-foot-five, get your facts straight," Toph said with dignity as two pairs of footsteps came slowly into the room. One of them was shuffling heavily and she could tell by the third heartbeat that the it was Katara. She turned to face Katara as Sokka helped her into the room, feeling through the vibrations of the stone floor how heavily pregnant she was. The last time she'd been in Republic City, a month before the fight with the rebels in Ba Sing Se, Katara had just found out that she was having a third child. She felt sad all of a sudden, knowing that she had missed so much in that time.

_At least she can give me some pointers. Spirits know that I have no idea what I'm doing otherwise._

"Look at you! You're as big as Appa!" she marveled at the Waterbender. "I could feel you walking from a mile away."

"Ha, ha!" Katara said dryly and held out her arms. Toph sank into her embrace, though it was awkward with the great swell of Katara's belly in the way. She felt the baby kick against her stomach with a hard thrust and immediately pulled back in surprise.

"Hey! Watch it, kid!" she said, bending over Katara's belly and putting her hand flat on the tight skin. "That's your Aunt Toph you're kicking. _And_ your very tired Mommy who probably wants you to move out and get a job already."

Katara laughed and clasped her by the elbows. "I'm so ready to not be pregnant, you don't even know. I'm so glad you came though. I didn't want to do this without you."

"Me too," she said, a touch of sadness creeping up on her. She fought it down, a smile tightening her lips. "Now sit down before Aang has a coronary."

"_Hmmph._ My husband seems to think I'm an invalid," Katara said, though there was deep affection beneath the annoyed tone of her voice.

"Not invalid. Just due any second, sweetie," Aang said patiently. It had the feel of an old argument. She turned, following Katara as Aang helped her to sit on a pile of cushions around the table. The others followed. She hesitated for a moment until she felt Sokka come up behind her. He placed his hand on her lower back and leaned in toward her ear.

"Now things feel right. It's not the same without you," he mumbled and pressed a kiss to her temple. If the others noticed, they didn't say anything. Sokka lead her toward the table and they sat next to each other at one end. Suki and Zuko sat across from them and Katara lounged against Aang on her mountain of pillows. The Air Acolytes came in after a few moments, as if they'd been waiting for them to get seated. The food smelled good, for all that she was afraid her stomach would rebel on her again.

"So what have you been up to in the past few months? I know in your letters you said you were visiting your parents," Katara said.

"I did. For about a month, which was about way too long. Then I did a little traveling. Two of my former students have opened up their own schools. I looked things over and gave them a few pointers. Then I went to Omashu and visited Bumi's great-granddaughter. She's doing some great things there since Bumi died. You should _really_ find the time to go visit, Aang."

"I know. It's on my list of things I want to do, but just haven't found time for. I've been so busy with the reconstruction of the Air Temples and the Council and getting things ready for the baby…" Aang started wearily. "Maybe some time next year, when the baby's old enough to travel? What do you think, Katara?"

"Sounds lovely," Katara said wistfully as everyone helped themselves to the food. There was a comfortable air about things that only good food and good company could bring. Toph ate slowly, hoping that her tender stomach would keep it down.

"So where are the brats? I expected to get mobbed the minute I came in the door. I have presents for them."

"In bed," Katara replied with a touch of relief in her voice. "They ate earlier and Suki and Zuko put them to bed for me."

"More like we tired them out so much that they were practically nodding off over their food," Suki snorted as Zuko chuckled. "They insisted on playing out in the snow the minute they woke up. So we made forts and snowmen and had snowball fights all day. Thought it was the least we could do so Katara could get some peace and quiet."

"Don't think I'm not grateful, either. It's a full time job keeping up with Bumi these days. Kya's a little easier, but she's going through a tattle-tell phase right now," Katara said around a mouthful of noodles. Toph chuckled and picked at her noodles, not even jumping when she felt Sokka's hand on hers beneath the table.

She felt her cheeks heat up as he laced their fingers and rubbed his thumb lightly against the back of her hand. Little shivers rode through her body, setting off a cascade of goosebumps. Such a potent thing; the simple touch of his warm skin against hers.

_"Don't talk. Just touch me."_

_"Yes."_

Memories assailed her in a delicious wave as Sokka's thumb stroked her. The conversations going on around her faded to nothing. There was only him. Sokka. Her heart hammered hard as she remembered the way he had moved within her, gentle when she'd needed it, hungry and rough when she'd demanded it. His hands had molded her body, shaped her in little shockwaves that had rippled out of her and into the earth.

The conversation went on around her and she listened as Zuko and Sokka, who seemed to not realize what his simple touch was doing to her, were having a spirited conversation about the train system that was being built in Republic City. Suki and Aang were talking about some Bending sport a bunch of people had been playing in the Dragon Flats Borough for the past couple of months. It was starting to catch on, but there had been injuries and there was talk from the Council about banning it.

Toph smiled to herself, listening to both conversations as Sokka's stroking thumb sent shivers throughout her body. At some point the Acolytes came in and unobtrusively cleared the table, but she barely paid attention to them.

_You have to tell him. You owe it to him. Do it before he makes a mistake you'll both regret…_

After a while, Katara yawned loudly, leaning back on Aang's supportive shoulder. He stroked his hands through her long, unbound hair. Their heartbeats were slow and steady. Toph could practically feel the love flowing between them. The baby's heartbeat was steady and peaceful, responding to his parents' peace.

"Would it be rude if we turned in early?" Aang asked after a while as Katara dropped into a light doze on his shoulder.

"No, please. She needs to rest," Zuko said, getting up and coming around the table. Aang whispered something to Katara, who made a sleepy noise and then allowed Zuko to gently help her to her feet. Aang got to his feet much easier and then picked his wife up in his arms, ignoring her protests.

"Night everyone," Aang said over his shoulder as Katara cradled her face against his neck.

"You know, I'm pretty beat myself," Suki said, getting to her feet suddenly. "The kids really wore me out."

"Oh, did they?" Zuko said archly, turning on her as Sokka tightened his fingers slightly and then released her hand. She took his signal and got to her feet.

"Well, I'm probably not as tired as _you_ are," Suki said with a warm tone in her voice Toph had never heard her use toward Zuko. "Sitting on your throne all day has made you soft."

"Wanna bet?" Zuko said in a low voice as she walked past him. Toph caught the way Suki's pulse jumped. Zuko's pulse ramped up too, his heart thudding in a steady, aroused pump that was unmistakable. Beside her, she felt Sokka hitch in a breath and swallow.

Toph's stomach curdled around the food and she took a step back, as if that would disconnect her from the revelation she'd just had, but there was no going back.

Because she _knew._ And she understood everything perfectly. The relief and too-happy greeting Suki had given her. Sokka's sure insistence in the boat that he was over Suki. That he wanted to be with her, that there had never been any other choice for him.

She had believed him. And maybe Sokka had even convinced himself that it was true, too.

But it wasn't.


	8. Chapter Seven

**PART THREE: HOLDING ON**

* * *

**CHAPTER SEVEN:**

Toph stood back, nodding machine-like when Zuko and Suki made their goodnights and left the dining hall together. When they were gone, their footsteps fading into the distance, she felt Sokka come up beside her. He reached out to take her hand, but the moment he touched her, she jerked back.

"Don't touch me," she said in a tight, hurt voice.

"What?" Sokka said, immediately confused. "Are you okay?"

"No. I'm not," she said through her teeth, her hand flattening on her stomach for a moment.

"Toph…" He reached out to grasp her shoulders, but she shook him off of her and started toward the door. "What's wrong? Did I do something wrong?"

"I get it, okay? We can just forget this whole thing, all right, because I'm not going to be a part of your stupid game!"

"Game? What game?" he asked, following her into the hallway. "What's going on? What are you talking about?"

She whirled on him, tears stinging her eyes. "Suki and Zuko are sleeping together!"

"Yeah… I know," Sokka said slowly. "And…you're…_upset about it?_ Umm…is there something I should know about you and Zuko?" The joke fell flat as she clenched her hands into fists hard enough that the stones beneath them shook. Sokka hitched in a sharp breath and held up his hands placatingly. "Whoa… Toph, I don't know what's going on right now, so talk to me. Okay? Talk to me."

"You're using me to get back at Suki. You're jealous and you want to make her jealous too."

Sokka took a step back. "Why do you think that?"

"It's pretty obvious," she spat into Sokka's stunned silence.

"_How_ could you think I'd do something like that to you? That I'm even capable of hurting you like that? That I'd _disrespect_ you like that?"

"Because it's the truth. And the worst part is that you don't even see it!" she said thickly.

"That's _not_ the truth, Toph. It's _not!_ I meant everything I said tonight. I'm in love with _you._ I want to be with _you._"

"I told you I wasn't going to be a consolation prize, Sokka! I won't come in second just because you can't have _her!_" Toph said, whirling on him, pointing back in the direction Zuko and Suki had disappeared.

"What? Do…do you think I'm…_settling_ for you or something?"

"What else am I supposed to think?"

"I don't know, maybe that I'm in love with you? That I want to be with you because that's what I want more than anything else on this planet? That Suki's relationship with Zuko has zero to do with how I feel about you?"

"Tell me you're not using me to make her jealous!"

"I'm _not_."

"Tell me you're not jealous she's with him!"

He huffed out an impatient noise. "It's not that simple, Toph."

A bitter laugh left her. "That's what I 't use me to get back at her, you fucking prick!"

"It's not like that!" Sokka said, calling after her as she turned on her heel and stalked off up the stairs. Tears were scorching her cheeks and she felt lightheaded. "Toph! TOPH!"

"GO FUCK YOURSELF, SOKKA!"

"Dammit, Toph, that's now things are! Will you let me explain?!" he said in a desperate tone as she charged up the stairs and took a left on the first landing she came to. She wasn't terribly familiar with the Air Temple's upper floors, but she didn't care where she was going, so long as it was away from him.

"If you need to explain it, then I can't trust a damned word out of your mouth!" she snarled over her shoulder.

"TOPH, STOP!" Sokka boomed, grabbing her arm. She whirled on him, launching part of the stone wall at him with barely a flex of her hand. A brick hit him across the face and he cried out in pain. "OW! TOPH! You don't understand!"

"Understand what? That I'm never going to be good enough? Fuck that," she hissed. "I am NOT that girl. I'm not someone who lets people walk all over her. I won't sit back and let you hurt me. I don't need it. I don't need you! I don't need anyone! I know who I am!"

Sokka stepped forward, his hand outstretched to her. "Toph…"

"Don't touch me! Do you even understand what I've been through? How far I ran? How hard I tried to forget about that night? How many times I told myself that…" she choked off and wiped at her face. "I tried so hard to get you out of my heart. But I couldn't. I'm such a fool…"

"No, you're not. I love you," Sokka said plaintively.

"You _can't_," she said as tears scorched her cheeks. She wiped at them, ashamed to be crying.

"Why not?"

"Because I don't need you to. I don't need your pity."

"Pity? You think I'm head over heels in love with you out of _pity?_ You know what, fuck _you_, Toph!"

"Fuck me? FUCK _YOU!_" she shouted, jabbing his chest with her finger. He caught her hand, wrenching her forward. She took a swing at him with her other hand, but he caught her fist. "BASTARD!"

"LISTEN TO ME! I. AM. NOT. IN. LOVE. WITH. SUKI!" he said through his teeth. "But…I can't say I'm not jealous of her and Zuko. I can't help it. She's always going to be someone important to me. I will always care about her—as a friend—and I will fucking _kill him_ if he hurts her. I'm jealous because I know what a wonderful woman she is and I know how lucky Zuko is to have a woman like her in his life, how lucky _any_ man would be. I freely admit that. I'm not ashamed of it."

"This isn't helping you," she said, her lips curling back over her teeth.

"Just because I know how lucky Zuko is _doesn't _mean I want her back. It certainly doesn't mean I'm _settling_ for you, or using you to make her jealous. It doesn't mean that I'm still in love with her. I told you, what I had with her is over and done with. Even if I could go back, I _wouldn't._ I had my chance to get her back after Ba Sing Se. You told me to go to her and I couldn't. I didn't realize the truth then, but I did yesterday. I realized what's between us is over and not just because _she's_ moved on…actually it was a relief to know that she had. _I've_ moved on too," he said, his hands letting go of her wrists and clasping the sides of her face. His breath stirred against her dry lips. "I want _you_. I have since before Ba Sing Se."

"I can't believe that."

"Why not, Toph?" he asked in a pained voice. "Why can't you let me in?"

"I don't want to get hurt. Not again."

"I'm not going to hurt you, I swear. I want to be with you. I want to wake up next to you. I want to eat bad noodles together and get in drunken fights in seedy bars. I want to see the world with you, just the two of us. I want to kiss you every single day. I want to make love to you. I want to hear you laugh when you toss some lowlife into a wall. I want to fall asleep with you in my arms. I want you to bust my balls when I do something stupid. I want to get into loud, ridiculous fights in the middle of my sister's house. I want to take you shopping just to hear you bitch when I take too long picking out belts. I want all of that and so much more. I look at you and I see the future and I see the past and I see _you._ I want _you_, Toph. Why can't you believe that?"

She breathed out. His pulse was steady. There were no lies in his words. Pain radiated through her chest. She wanted to believe him more than anything.

He swiped the tears from her cheeks with gentle thumbs as her chin trembled. "I want to. I want all of that, Sokka. I always have. I've loved you for so long, but it's not that simple. If it ever was. You don't know… I wish…"

But she couldn't say it.

"You know what I wish? I wish that I'd chased you across the Earth Kingdom and dragged you back home months ago. This isn't about Suki and me, okay? I told her I wished her the best and I do. She's my friend and I admit that things are weird between us and I still feel a little jealous, okay? She's my ex-girlfriend, things are supposed to be weird like that. But one day they won't be and that's okay too. But this is not about her. This is about you and me. You're the only one that matters to me right now. You're hurting and I don't know how to fix it."

She could hear the pain in his voice, the plea. She suddenly hated the person she'd just become, the jealous, irrational, angry person. It was so unlike her. She had always been so confident in who she was, and in what she wanted.

Except when it came to Sokka. There was something about him that made all of her carefully constructed walls tumble down. He was the chink in her armor and he always had been.

_And he doesn't know…_

"Do you love me, Toph?" he asked, his forehead against hers.

"Yes, but…" she started, the words surging onto her tongue with a searing force.

"No buts. Are we in love?"

She listened to the beat of his heart, the pounding of it like a drum, matching both hers and the second heartbeat inside of her. The little flickering thrum was like a faint echo pinging through her body, and she felt its presence with a keen awareness.

"Yes."

"Do you want to be with me?" he insisted.

She opened her mouth, intending to say yes, but the truth came tumbling out of her like an avalanche.

"Sokka, I'm pregnant."

"…What?" Sokka finally said into the stunned silence.

"I'm pregnant," she said, tears in burning her cheeks.

"What?"

"I'm pregnant," she repeated impatiently as his hands dropped from her face.

"'Kay. That's what I thought you said," he mumbled and then made a weird noise somewhere between a grunt and a gulp.

"Sokka…"

"Pregnant. You're pregnant. You're pregnant? You're pregnant! YOU'RE _PREGNANT!?"_ he said, his voice rising in volume and stunned disbelief as her words sank in. She flinched as he paced a little in the hallway. "HOLY SHIT, TOPH! How did…? When? You don't even look… How far along?"

"About seven weeks," she said thickly, causing him to stop dead in his tracks.

"Seven weeks?"

"Yeah."

"You mean it's not mine?" he asked in a small voice, in a tone she couldn't even begin to decipher. She couldn't tell if he was relieved or hurt or a combination of both.

"Well, considering I haven't seen you in six months, then no. It's probably not yours," she said with a bite in her voice.

"Oh," he said, drawing himself up in front of her. "So…who is he?"

She chewed on the inside of her cheek and found herself shrugging. "No one."

"No one," he repeated flatly. "No one is the father of your child. The child you're going to give birth to because you're pregnant."

She blew out a shaky breath. "He wasn't…_no one_. I stopped at a tavern one night on the road. The beer was cheap, the food was lousy. He was the only Earthbender in the place and we struck up a conversation. He was smart and funny and he smelled nice. I don't need to explain myself, okay? I did what I did because I was lonely and hurting and I needed something good in my life, even for a few hours. I needed _someone_ that night and he was good company. I left in the morning without saying goodbye. It wasn't supposed to be anything more than that. Except…"

"Now you're pregnant."

"Yeah, now I'm pregnant. And I get it, you know? I mean, you spent years dancing around Suki, avoiding marrying her because she wanted kids. That's what broke you guys up. Maybe you're not in love with her anymore. Maybe you _do l_ove me, but I know what's going to happen here. So don't worry about a thing."

"Toph…"

"You can keep your romantic declarations and your good intentions. I know where I stand here. I'm on my own and that's okay. I always have been, but now I don't have to be alone. I'll finally have someone who needs me, really needs me. So go ahead and walk away Sokka. I won't even hold it against you. I don't need your acceptance here. And I don't want it."

"You don't?"

Emotion threatened to choke her, but she just shook her head. "Of course not."

"Okay." Sokka said, turning on his heel and walking away from her. Her throat tightened, the floor dropping away beneath her. A sob threatened to strangle her as it attempted to claw its way out of her chest. Sokka got three steps away and then stopped, spinning back around to face her. "Okay, so let me get this straight. You thought I was using you to get back at Suki, but also that I pitied you and was settling, all while thinking I'd chuck you aside the minute I found out you were pregnant? Did I get that right? Have I been keeping up? Because let me tell you this conversation has been one of the wildest freakin' ones of my life! AND I ONCE HAD A CONVERSATION WITH A GIGANTIC FUCKING SPIRIT OWL IN A BIG DAMNED LIBRARY THAT SANK INTO THE FUCKING DESERT!" He panted a little and then said in a more calm voice, "So, did I get all that?"

"…I…I guess so…" she said numbly, wondering where this was going.

"Well I'm not going to lie, I feel a little insulted right now. Like, the stuff with Suki I get. It's fucked up, but I get it how you might think all of that. It's not like I haven't given you reason to think that before. But what makes you think that I would completely lose interest in you just because you're pregnant? Explain that to me, because_ that_ is a problem. We have a _huge _problem if you think _that._"

"We do?" she asked, numb, pain radiating through her as Sokka closed the distance between them.

"Oh yeah. We do. I don't care," he said assuredly and then laughed at her expression. "You heard me, I don't care. You're pregnant? _Don't care_."

"What do you mean, you _don't care?_"

"I love you, you stubborn buttwad, and just because you slept with some guy and got knocked up, that doesn't mean I'm going to just stop. I mean, did you honestly think that I would tuck my tail and run when you told me? _Really?_ What kind of asshole do you think I am, Toph? When I said that I loved you, I meant it. You don't need my acceptance though. You never have. But you have it any way. Unconditionally. So deal with _that_."

Her mind was racing to keep up. "It's…it's not yours…"

"Don't care."

"You don't want kids."

"Never said that. Not once. Not _ever_," he said firmly.

"But all that stuff with Suki…"

"I wasn't ready to have kids with her, that's true," he whispered and then tilted her chin. "But you're not her."

"Sokka…"

"I let you run away from me in Ba Sing Se and I've spent the last six months regretting it. I'm not going to let you do it again. I'm going to hold on," he said as his hand wrapped around the back of her neck, cradling her head. "I'm not saying this isn't a lot to take in, but I'm not walking away. I hope you won't either."

She clutched his shirt, feeling the steady beat of his heart, clinging to it. "I won't."

"Good, because—" But she put her fingers against his mouth, stopping him.

"Don't talk. Just kiss me."

"_Yes._"


	9. Chapter Eight

**PART THREE: HOLDING ON**

* * *

**CHAPTER EIGHT**

Sokka's arms encircled her, his mouth moving against hers slowly. His kiss was dark, deep, promising. She lifted herself up on her tiptoes, her arms around his neck, fingers tangling in the fall of his ponytail. He angled his head as he tucked her against his shoulder. She shivered as his warrior's hands pressed heavily on her lower back, bringing her against the hard, muscular length of him. He was warm and solid and he belonged to her.

"We shouldn't do this here," she mumbled against his mouth. "Anyone could come along…"

His lower lips slowly slid along hers and then he released her with another huffing laugh. "No one's going to disturb us. We were arguing pretty loudly and I doubt they want to get in the middle of the drama. Besides, I don't care who knows how I feel about you."

She clung to him, kissing him again, reveling in the feel of his body against hers. He seemed unhurried, his kisses thorough, breath-stealing. Like he'd been dying to kiss her like this for a long time and wasn't going to rush it.

She felt lightheaded, and not just from his kisses. There was nothing more arousing than knowing someone wanted you as much as you wanted them.

_He doesn't care. About any of it. _Everything was still a complete mess—at least she was, emotionally, and she knew it on some level, but for now she was willing to let it all go. Right now she had him and he belonged to her and no one else. It was more than she had ever dared to hope for.

A fiercely savage and possessive feeling gripped her and she nipped his lower lip, eliciting a rumbly, throaty growl. The sound of it sent thrills shocking through her, making her toes tingle, not to mention what it did to other parts of her body.

"Maybe we should just find a room and get weird with each other?" she suggested, making Sokka laugh. It was a genuine belly laugh, the laugh she'd always loved. She felt warm, a flush rising up behind her ears.

"You sure that's what you want, Toph?" Sokka said warmly, a smile in his voice. He knew it was though, and she grinned.

"Are you kidding? I've been ready to jump you since the docks," Toph said softly, her hand sliding down his front and hooking in the belt of his pants.

Sokka breathed out, shaking a little. His voice was a little unsteady when he said, "Come on," and then tugged her down the hallway and through the nearest open door. By the feel of it, it was one of the many empty dormitory rooms that lined the upper floors of the temple. Sokka slid the door shut behind them and turned back to her.

She bit down on her lower lip and backed up a step. "Whose room is this?"

"Don't care," Sokka said, reaching for her.

"Me neither," she said, her mouth slamming into his with a needy crush. He was all muscle, hot skin and hard bone. She felt like climbing him, sinking her fingers into his skin and never letting go.

Somehow she got his shirt unbuttoned, her fingers slipping inside of the soft material and along his muscular pecks and down his ribs. Their tongues brushed with the lightest of teasing caresses as she pulled the shirt down his arms and let it fall at their feet. She felt his hands on the buttons of her shirt, undoing them until only one, just over her breasts, was done up. His fingers dipped inside of the shirt and skimmed her belly, raising goosebumps. His palms flattened on the dip of her waist and he held her against him for one hot moment, his fingers digging in deliciously. Then he released her, shrugging out of his shirt with a ripple of muscle.

Their mouths parted and he exhaled raggedly against her lips. "You're so beautiful…"

She sank against him, into him, her lips teasing his as her hands walked the wide plains of his torso. She remembered every dip, every fall, every muscle and hair. He was gorgeous beneath her fingertips, a work of art. He buried his face against her neck, his lips and teeth peppering her with kisses and nips. She gasped, her fingernails raking down his stomach.

Sokka moaned in his throat, his hand traveling up her torso, over her ribs and then, gently cupping one of her breasts beneath the shirt. His callused fingers squeezed at her soft flesh, her nipples waking with a painful thrill. Little swirls of pleasure latticed through her warm body and she moaned with him, her fingers walking down his naked chest, landing on the laces of his thick pants. As she undid them, he walked them backward toward his bed, guiding them both. He turned her in place at the last moment, undoing the last button on her shirt and tugging it down her shoulders as her knees hit the edge of the bed.

She shrugged out of her shirt and it pooled on the floor at their feet. The cold air whispered against her skin, chilling her, but not for long. Sokka let out a groan, bending over her, pulling her against him as his arms encircled her waist. His warm breath sent a blast of heat across her skin. His mouth alighted on her breasts, his lower lip dragging along her skin in a slow caress that made her fingers dig into his shoulders.

His tongue flicked along her left nipple, and then he gently pulled it between his teeth. She gasped, her whole body lifting toward his mouth. Her nipples had been especially sensitive lately and she felt the crash and rush of the nerves jangling as they awakened beneath his careful ministrations. His tongue followed his teeth, flatly circling her pebbled skin with a soft, wet pressure.

The sensation was almost too much, and he'd barely touched her. Her hips twitched toward him as her fingers tangled in his hair, holding him to her breasts, desperate for more. She got her hand into the front of his pants after a frustratingly long moment.

Her fingers encircled him, caressing, enjoying the moan he let slip past his tongue as he twitched in her fingers. He was half-hard already and slippery in her fingers. He stood up straight, his bottom teeth dragging along her neck with a skin-tingling scrape. Then he kissed her again, his hands cupping her face as she stroked him. They broke off after several blistering kisses when he sighed into her mouth, his hips surging against her hand with an eagerness that set her pulse racing upwards with a hard pump.

"Toph…"

Her mouth lowered to his chest and she sucked at his warm skin, his hands tangling up in her long hair. He hardened in her hand, throbbing, eager. She closed her eyes and dragged her mouth to his nipples, relishing in the salty taste of him in her mouth. She worked his nipple between her lips the same way he'd done her, teeth grazing. He surged against her, her callused fingers filled with his length.

She felt his hands on her waist, pulling her pants down the curves of her hips. They dropped to the floor and she kicked them away. His hands slid down her back to cup her buttocks possessively.

He breathed out against her mouth, his whole body shaking, a slick wetness coating her fingers as she pumped her hand around the head of his cock.

Toph sank down onto the bed as Sokka's hands trailed along her back, leaving goosebumps behind. Then he pushed his pants down his thighs. Toph tugged him forward and he went, hissing as she slid him into her mouth. His hand tangled in her hair as sucked him deeply, her tongue undulating on the underside of his cock, her fingers gripping the base of him tightly.

"_Hnnnng…_ Toph…" he mumbled, quivering in place as she shaped him with her mouth. His salty taste spread on her tongue. He was hard and soft at the same time, her tongue following the ridge of one heavy vein. Her lips trailed across his blunt head, kissing him lightly, teasingly. Then she sucked him back inside of her mouth, so hard and so fast he cried out, his hand tightening in her hair, his hips thrusting forward to meet her. After several shallow thrusts, he pulled back and she panted, her eyes wet. "Enough," he said roughly and pushed her back on the bed, her hair spread out on the covers. He lowered himself between her thighs, covering her with his warmth like a blanket.

"Couldn't take it?" she teased, her fingers wrapped up in his ponytail as he landed kisses along her breasts, nuzzling her with a deadly intent. His stubble scraped her, sending little shivers quaking through her skin. "Wuss."

"I'm gonna get you for that…" he said darkly, his voice rumbling through her body as he covered her. His fingers hooked on her underwear and he dragged them down slowly. Excitement made her pulse leap, her body quaking with little seismic tremors.

He worked his way down her still-flat stomach, his lips lingering just below her belly button. He hummed a tune she didn't recognize as his fingers skimmed her hips and then trailed down along the inside of her thighs. He kissed her stomach again, nuzzling her with a groan. She felt warm as the lullaby spread through her body, vibrating in her bones. She flushed and a grin lingered on her lips.

"Sokka…"

But he was already moving on, his humming turning into a greedy, hungry noise as he slipped down between her thighs. His lips pressed against the soft muscle, teeth plucking at her skin, setting off a series of little explosions throughout her lower body.

Sokka grinned up at her with an indulgent sound as she drew in a shuddering breath, waiting for him to slake the fire he'd caused in her. She felt his fingers, hot and strong, skilled and patient, part the wet flesh between her legs and brush against her clitoris. An avalanche of pleasure followed, spreading out in little shockwaves.

Her head dug into the bed, her lip bitten. Sokka's mouth trailed down her thigh, breath stirring against her with a hot, enticing blast. She twitched her hips up off of the bed, need driving her. His fingertip slid down through the wetness and then sank deep within her.

Toph sighed with pleasure, her breathing shallow as Sokka slowly massaged in and out of her. Everything felt warm and wet and she clenched around him greedily. When he lowered his head and let his tongue strafe across her clit, it was almost too much. Her back arched, muscles growing taunt.

He swirled his tongue against her flesh, making pleasure zing throughout her nervous system. She whimpered and arched her back, driving her hips downward and up. "Sokka…"

He added a second finger, sinking slowly into her with a moan that shattered them both. His slowly thrusting fingers opened her up to him, her body slicking his passage. He withdrew his fingers and swirled his tongue through it, licking into her with a probing heat that had her squirming in place. Then he pulled back and circled her clit again, teasing it with the tip of his tongue as his fingers thrust back inside of her with a bit more force than before. She gasped a little and he chuckled.

"Wuss."

"Shut up and come here," she said, pulling him up her body. Sokka's fingers slipped out of her and he reached up, grasping her by the hips and pulling her up the narrow bed. He lay down on his side and rolled her against him, one hand hooking beneath her knee, opening her to him, his other arm threading around her torso, fingers spreading on her shoulders. They lay entwined together on their sides.

Her fingers found his cock again as it pressed into her stomach, wet and slick. She pumped him in her fist and was pleased by the sounds he made against her neck. Her mouth met his shoulder as he pulled her against the warm wall of his chest. Her leg slid up his hip, hooking around his ass. He shivered as she sucked on his neck, laying claim, her fist squeezing around him.

She pulled a wicked smile and tilted her hips back, guiding him to her opening. Sokka's hand slipped up the outside of her thigh and gripped her hip, groaning as the tip of his cock slid through her wet flesh and grazed her clit.

Their breaths met, lips close enough to touch. They both quivered; the connection intense, intimate, and full of possibilities. His hips moved in tiny circles, his cock rubbing along her clit, sending spikes of pleasure scattering through her nervous system.

"I knew that night would never be enough," Sokka whispered, his nose brushing hers, his fingertips skimming up her sides, along her shoulder and up her neck. He traced her jaw, her cheekbone, and finally, the plush of her lips. She suckled his fingertip into her mouth a little, tasting herself. "Not for me. Once I had you, I knew I'd never be satisfied with anything else."

"Flatterer," Toph whispered with a little laugh as their hips shifted and she slid his cock downwards. He pressed into her, barely, the taunt quiver of his body like a bow pulled back, waiting to let loose.

"You love flattery."

"I love _you," _she said, capturing his bottom lip between hers as she pressed her hips forward. Sokka groaned into her mouth, turning his head to deepen the kiss as their bodies came together. She gripped his ribs, her leg tightening around him as he came to rest inside of her.

Sokka's hand landed on her hip again and he rocked against her in shallow, steady thrusts, filling her. She kissed him hard, pleasure latticing through her body. Everything was warm, wet, full of friction and heat that licked up her spine and centered in the dewy places of her body. Sokka breathed with her, his fingertips tickling her shoulders, his arm pulling her closer.

She gasped as he readjusted, not changing the slow pace, but going deeper. So much deeper. She shivered around him, her hand cupping his cheek. Sokka rolled his hips a little faster and she bit down on his lip, releasing him with a simmering smile.

He kissed her neck, her shoulder, rocking her with him. Her hair was everywhere, unbound as it was. Sokka's hands touched her everywhere he could reach, his hands roaming her torso, cupping her breasts and thumbing her nipples as he slowly stoked her, as patient as a hunter, as languid as a tigerdillo lounging in the sun. She let her own hands walk over his skin, feeling his muscles pull and roll and bunch beneath the heated surface of his skin.

"Come for me, Toph…" Sokka mumbled, licking his lips as he squeezed her hip, sheathing himself inside of her with a smooth thrust. He claimed her mouth again and she let the pleasure come on her wave by wave. Her heart thundered in her chest, close to a heart attack. Sokka was moaning heavily, groaning between each claiming thrust.

Her fingernails dug into in his shoulder blades. Pleasure crowned in her, ignited by the rough groan rumbling through Sokka's chest, vibrating her in place. She shuddered around him, her body gripping his. She kissed him again, unable to stop as she held on, completion speeding toward her, spurred on by his body sinking into hers.

She breathed his name against his lips, letting go of it all as Sokka came inside of her with groan, his hips arching high against hers. Stars exploded inside of her with an electric crackle, unleashing a flood and an earthquake in equal measure. She gasped his name, clutching him as her body tightened around his. She felt the wet explosion inside of her, felt him shuddering, the groan of her name, the way his fingers dug bruises in her hip.

She clung to him, wrapped around him on the narrow, unfamiliar bed, not caring about much of anything but the man in her arms.

After a few moments, Sokka's nose brushed hers with a soft nuzzling bump and she heard his huffing smile as he looked down at her. He didn't say anything. He didn't have to.


	10. Chapter Nine

**PART THREE: HOLDING ON**

* * *

**CHAPTER NINE:**

Sokka dozed lightly, all-too aware of the woman in his arms, her face cradled against his neck, her breath whispering across his chest. Everything was warm, and perfect in its stillness. Toph breathed slowly and deeply, dreaming, he hoped, of happiness.

_She deserves it, too. She deserves everything good in her life, _he thought, half-awake, his fingers slowly caressing the backs of her shoulders. She felt too thin to him. Thinner than he remembered, anyway. The past several months had clearly taken their toll on her. He opened his eyes and studied her face in the darkness.

She was beautiful. Delicate in unexpected ways, she was small-boned, finely muscled and yet tougher than a mountain when she didn't want to be moved. Her brows were fine, arching and expressive. Her thick black lashes stood out starkly against her skin. Her lips were pale pink, unadorned, but lush. Ripe. A flush still blazed high in her cheeks, a flush he'd caused. Pride rose in him as he lifted his hand and pushed her tangled black hair back from her face. His finger traced the curve of her jaw, marveling at her.

How had it taken him so long to realize how he felt about her? When had she crept up on him? How had it happened?

He didn't know. It seemed to him that one day, out of nowhere, his best friend had turned into the only thing he wanted in the world. He'd been so stupid not to realize it, even back in Ba Sing Se, when everything was confusing and he was still reeling from his break-up with Suki, and the lingering feelings he'd had for her.

_My fault. I shouldn't have let her leave Ba Sing Se. I should have realized…_

Her words echoed in his head, accusatory, defensive and pained. He examined what had happened, the things she'd said to him about Suki. He could see how she would have thought that he was trying to get back at Suki. Hadn't the two of them been locked into a never-ending cycle of break-up and reconciliation for years? Hurt, pregnant and alone, it was no wonder she was afraid that he was using her, that she'd be hurt. The last time he'd told her that he was in love with her, he'd also promised to marry another woman.

_I'm an idiot. I don't deserve her. I'm going to spend the rest of my life making sure she knows how much I love her. _

And maybe the way things had happened was for the best. Maybe he'd needed the space away from both Toph and Suki to get his head straight. Maybe if Toph had come back to Republic City with him the guilt and confusion he'd felt would have driven them apart, poisoned what they might have had. He could imagine how it would have hurt her, knowing that he might still be in love with Suki… Unsure if he'd cast her aside… Wasn't that what she'd said, what she had been afraid of?

He pulled her against him a little tighter, holding on, trying to pour his regret into her, his love, his surety. _It's her. It's only her. It's been only her for so long. I'll never hurt her again. _

He had made his mistakes, a lot of them, and there was no going back. None of it seemed so bad though. Not with her in his arms, the taste of her on his lips, the echo of her words in his head.

She loved him. That was all that mattered right now.

Well, that, and…

He slipped his hand beneath the thin covers, pressing his warm palm against her stomach. Pregnant. She was pregnant. He bit down on his lower lip, feeling the barest flutter of fear in him. Apprehension followed close on its heels. He hadn't lied to her when he'd said he didn't care that she was pregnant, that he wouldn't leave, but he still felt fear growing in him. Fear of the unknown, fear that he wasn't good enough. That he wouldn't be able to give her what she needed now. It was an echo of everything that had gone wrong with his relationship with Suki.

It wasn't that he didn't like children; he'd always been fond of them, especially his niece and nephew. He'd always imagined he'd have children eventually, but that possibility had seemed always to exist in some nebulous future, too intangible any idea to grasp. He thought of the pain in Suki's eyes when she'd put Kya to bed the night before, the yearning. Guilt suffused him. Suki wanted children, wanted them badly, and he had always danced around the subject, afraid to commit. Afraid he couldn't live up to the ideal she had in her head of marriage and a family. He'd been a coward. And it had driven her away.

And now here was Toph, pregnant by some stranger she had sought solace in the arms of one night in a tavern, so ready to take on the world, feeling alone and abandoned. And yet still strong. Scared, but brave in the face of her obstacles. She'd been so terrified that her condition would drive him away… The idea that she would think that of him had lodged inside of him and cut through the shock, the fear in a way nothing else could have.

He didn't know what he was doing. Maybe no one in this position did and that was okay. He was going to be there for her, and the baby, no matter what. He'd just have to grow up, something he should have done that night in Ba Sing Se.

"I love you," he said, rubbing her stomach, as if he could send warmth and love through her skin and into the baby. He didn't know if he was talking to Toph, or the child within her. It didn't matter.

Toph stirred against his shoulder, breathing in through her nose as she awoke with a snort. Her eyes opened and he got lost in the pale green orbs. She breathed him in, probably realizing by the beat of his heart that he was awake. He gently rubbed her stomach, a smile curling his lips.

"Is it morning?" she asked in a muzzy voice, her hand sliding up his shoulder and then gently touching his stubbled chin.

"No. We have a few hours yet," he replied, leaning in so that she could feel his breath on her lips. Her eyes slid shut again and she breathed in deeply, as if she were inhaling him, and the lingering, heady scent of their lovemaking.

"So what are we going to tell them?"

"About what?"

"The fact that I'm straight up preggers."

Sokka chuckled a little, kissing the top of her head. He smoothed her hair back and said, "I find the truth usually works. We'll just tell them we're head over heels in love and that you're having another man's baby and that I'm totally cool with that."

"That's so crazy it might just work," Toph laughed, but then a worried expression crossed her face. "What if they… I mean… I don't care what anyone thinks of me, but…"

He put a finger beneath her chin and brought her face up so that he could kiss the tip of her nose. "Our friends love you. And I know for a fact that Katara's going to lose her mind at the prospect of us having a kid. Seriously, she's going to freak out, but only in a good way. And you know Aang. He's the most accepting guy on the planet."

"Zuko's probably going to be weird about it though."

"Zuko's weird about everything, I wouldn't take it personally," Sokka said with a laugh they both shared.

"What about Suki?" Toph said after a long moment, her voice tired and sad. Full of regrets neither of them could soothe.

Sokka was quiet for a long moment, remembering the look in his ex-girlfriend's eyes as she'd watched Kya sleeping. He sighed. "Suki'll be okay."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course I am," he said gently and she smiled against his shoulder. "When are you going to tell them?"

"After Katara has the baby, I think. I don't wanna steal her thunder."

"And what about us? When should we tell them we're together?"

"Never. I'd die of the shame," Toph snorted, rolling away from him on the bed. He caught her around the waist and rolled with her. Twice. They landed on the floor in a tangle of limbs and blankets, the sheets twisted around their feet. He laughed as she shrieked, sprawled across his chest, her hip against his stomach. He'd made sure his back had taken the brunt of the fall, but she still looked indignant. "Sokka!"

"Whoopsie-daisy," he said unrepentantly as she smacked him in the shoulder, sitting up on his lap. The sheet fell down her shoulder, exposing one pale pink nipple. The sight of it sent arousal shooting straight through him. "My bad."

"I don't know what I see in you," she said, her cheeks flushing as she felt the not-so-subtle reaction of his body. She was naked beneath the sheet, wet and warm from the night before. His cock twitched with interest. "Oh, that's right. I don't see anything at all."

She waved her hands in front of her blind eyes as he laughed, his hips shifting up off of the floor ever-so-slightly. Just enough to make her bite her lower lip, her fingernails digging into his stomach.

"Those blind jokes never get old," he said, tensing as Toph shifted on his lap, bringing their bodies into alignment with a jolt. She leaned over him, her hair falling across one shoulder. He tried to kiss her, but she moved out of his reach at the last second, a sexy, lopsided grin on her lips. He made a protesting noise in his throat and her hips shifted forward and back, his rapidly hardening cock pressed between his stomach and her soft, yielding center. His fingers dug into her lower back. "Have I ever told you how sexy you are?"

"Do tell," she practically purred, and then pressed a needy kiss to his lips. She tasted of sleep and contentment, her body moving against his, into his. His fingers threaded through her hair, stroking down her back and along her spine. She ground against him, teasing him as he strained toward her wet center. The rough grind, the slick slide of her soft flesh along his cock made him groan, pleasure igniting in his crotch like a blaze out of control. Their mouths parted and they panted against one another's stinging lips.

"I want you so much…" he said in a low voice, though he knew perfectly well that she could already feel how much he wanted her.

"Mmm…I…" she started to say, and then stopped. She sat bolt upright, her hand clamping over her mouth. "Uh-oh."

"What's wrong?" he asked in alarm, seeing how green she suddenly looked. Her body gave a shudder, and not from pleasure. She looked like she was going to vomit and he saw her hand go to her stomach for a split second. Realization hit him as Toph reeled away from him. She was tangled in the sheets though, and didn't get far. "Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit! Don't puke! There's gotta be something—"

He looked around the sparse room frantically and spied a hand-painted porcelain vase sitting on the table in the corner. He yanked himself out from underneath the blankets and rolled over on the floor, his eyes bulging as his cock came into contact with the cold stone floor. It was a shock, to say the least.

He yanked his foot out of the sheets and dived for the vase. He dived back toward her just in time to shove the vase beneath her nose. The next moment she let lose.

He grimaced in sympathy as Toph threw up into the vase, her shoulders shaking. She moaned, her eyes watering. The smell of vomit filled the room and he wrinkled his nose, reaching out and pulling her hair back as she took the vase with both hands and practically buried her face in it. Her whole body seemed to curl in on itself as he murmured to her.

"Morning sickness, huh?"

She nodded, coming up at last. She grabbed the blanket and wiped at her mouth. "Sorry."

"Don't worry about it," he said, smoothing her hair back. She'd broken out into a cold sweat, shivering on the floor. "Katara always has really bad morning sickness during the first few months of her pregnancies. She even puked on me once. If I can handle that, I can handle you chucking up in a vase."

"Kinda ruined the mood though," she said miserably. He kissed her temple.

"I'm pretty sure the cold floor ruined the mood, not you," he said with a smile as Toph went still and turned her ear toward the door.

"Someone's coming," she said just as he heard Zuko's voice from the hallway, followed by his quick footsteps. He was practically running.

"Sokka? Toph! Where are you?" he called in a frantic, breathless voice that was edged with excited panic. Sokka's heart lurch, echoing the inexplicable panic in the Fire Lord's voice. "SOKKA?!"

"We're in here," he called, looking around for his pants. "Just a minute, okay?"

But Zuko wasn't listening. The door banged open as Zuko burst into the room, breathing hard. At the same moment, Toph started throwing up again, nearly shoving her whole head into the vase as her stomach rebelled on her. Startled by Zuko's sudden arrival, Sokka jumped to his feet, completely forgetting that he hadn't found his pants yet.

"Sokka! You have to—" Zuko stopped short, his eyes widened as his gaze flicked from Toph on the floor, tangled in the blankets and loudly throwing up into a vase, to Sokka, standing buck naked in the middle of the floor, freezing in place, his hands lifted, palms outward, a grimace on his face. Zuko blinked, his whole face turning as red as his scar—and the welted, fresh scratch marks on his chest and shoulders that Sokka couldn't help notice. Zuko wasn't wearing a shirt, only pajama pants. "Uh…"

"Uh…" Sokka started as Zuko's gaze flicked from his face, down to his crotch and then very quickly back to his face again. "_Hey!_ Eyes up here, buddy!"

Sokka flung his hands in front of his crotch, though his modesty had already been compromised. The shock seemed to wear off of Zuko at last and he jumped, his hand slapping over his eyes.

"You're _naked!_"

"Yeah…"

"With _Toph_."

"Yeah…"

"WHY?!"

"_You know why!_" Sokka said in a shrill voice, throwing out his hands. He squeaked and cupped himself again.

"I probably should have knocked."

"You _think?_ GET THE HELL OUT!" Zuko spun on his heel, his shoulder slamming into the doorframe. He bounced back a step, his hand still over his eyes. He regained his balance and charged into the hallway. Sokka bounded forward and slammed the door shut as Toph's vomiting petered out and she groaned from the floor. Sokka started toward her but stopped as a knock sounded on the door. "Go away, Zuko!"

"I can't! Aang sent me to find you. Katara went into labor an hour ago! She's already with the midwife."

"What? Shit, tell him we'll be right there!" Sokka said, Zuko's earlier excitement and panic infecting him again. He heard Zuko reply, but he wasn't listening. He turned to Toph, who climbed shakily to her feet. "Are you okay?"

"I think I got it all out for now," she said, wiping her hand down her face and then grinning a little. "Katara will kill us if we're not there, you know."

Sokka grinned. "Then we'd better throw some clothes on. I've got a niece or a nephew to meet."


	11. Epilogue

**EPILOGUE:**

* * *

"He's beautiful," Suki said in a hushed voice, pacing back and forth at the foot of Katara's bed. She had the baby in her arms and Sokka could see one of his little fists sticking out of the blue blanket, along with a tuft of dark hair. "Katara, he's perfect."

Katara smiled tiredly from the bed, the crisp winter sunlight streaming in through the window. Sokka studied his sister's face. Her hair was still damp and pulled back in a tangled tumble. There were high blooms of red in her cheeks. She looked exhausted, but there was a healthy glow about her. Zuko, who had found a shirt at some point that morning, was fussing with Katara's blankets and pillows. Sokka sat beside her on the bed, holding her hand.

"What do you think, sis? You think he's a Bender? Or do me and Boom-Boom have company on the non-Bending part of the family tree?"

"Can you even tell so early?" Zuko asked, coming up beside Suki and peering down at the baby, his hand resting on Suki's lower back.

"I knew Kya would be a Waterbender when she was born. I don't know how I knew, but I did, the same way I knew Bumi wasn't," Katara said, sinking contentedly back against the mountain of cushions Zuko had arranged behind her. Her eyes danced. "He's an Airbender."

Sokka's grin widened instantly as everyone in the room took that in. Aang was no longer the last Airbender in the world. This was…_huge_. Sokka's fingers squeezed Katara's and their gazes met. He gave her a gentle smile and lifted her hand, gently kissing the backs of her fingers.

"Good job, sis."

Suki looked down at the baby and touched his tiny fist with her fingers. The baby gave a soft, wet cry. "Did you hear that? You're an Airbender, little guy." She lifted her gaze back to Katara. "Have you guys settled on a name yet?"

"Tenzin," Aang said from the doorway, a soft smile on his lips. He glanced at the baby and then over at his wife as he stepped into the room, Kya in his arms, Bumi clinging to his free hand. There was an apprehensive look on Bumi's face. "We've decided to call him Tenzin."

"I like it," Zuko said as Aang put Kya down. She ran to Katara, calling her name. Katara held out her arms and embraced her gently.

"Mommy, where did your tummy go?" Kya asked, patting the blankets over Katara's stomach.

"I had the baby. Remember we talked about that?" Katara said, smoothing Kya's hair back. "You have a new little brother now."

Sokka watched Bumi, who had let go of Aang's hand and was hovering at the doorway, watching as Suki handed the baby over to his father. There was a look of wonder in Aang's hazel eyes as he twitched the blanket around the baby. He touched Tenzin's small forehead, drawing the faintest of arrow shapes. Bumi's gaze flicked down to the floor, his expressive little mouth flattening into a thin line.

"Daddy, I wanna see the baby," Kya said, getting off of the bed and tugging on Aang's pants. He started and then grinned down at his daughter.

"Sure, honey," Aang said, crouching down in front of her. Kya peered at the baby for a moment and then wrinkled her nose.

"He looks like an old man!" she declared, backing up a step as they laughed. Aang turned to Bumi and gestured him forward with a jerk of his tattooed head.

"What about you, Bumi? You wanna see your baby brother?" Bumi's feet dragged a little as he cautiously approached Aang. His eyebrows rose as he looked over the edge of the blanket and his lower lip pushed out a little bit. "What do you think?"

"Hiya Tenzin," Bumi said shyly, which was very unlike him. Then fled back to the doorway. Sokka's brow furrowed. He had a feeling he knew what was bugging the six-year-old. Aang stood smoothly and looked around the room, a grin on his face.

"Who hasn't held him yet?" he asked.

"Me," Katara lied, holding out her arms.

"You held him for nine months. Come on, give someone else a turn," Toph said, speaking up from a chair in the corner. She'd been very quiet ever since the midwife had let them into the room. Aang chuckled and brought Tenzin over to her. He gently passed him over, making sure that she cradled his head. Toph hitched in a breath, her mouth flattening nervously. The others might not have noticed, but Sokka did. She lowered her face and kissed his forehead gently.

Sokka watched her, a little smile on his face. He knew exactly what was going through her mind.

_She's going to make a great mother,_ he thought with wonder as Aang came over and kissed Katara's forehead. Suki picked up Kya, who was babbling away about the baby to Zuko, who was listening patiently. Sokka cut his gaze back to Bumi, and watched at the boy slipped out of the room.

Sokka immediately got to his feet and followed him out into the hallway, only to find his boisterous nephew looking oddly grave, his arms crossed over his chest, a dark expression on his face.

"What's wrong, Boom-Boom?" he asked, though he knew, of course.

"Nothing," Bumi said sullenly, toeing the rug.

"Kinda feels weird, doesn't it? Not being a Bender like your mom and dad," he said gently. Bumi's head shot up. Sokka smiled and sank to his eye level.

"Mom's got Kya and now dad has the baby. I heard them talking. He really wanted an Airbender like him. I can't do that stuff. I've _tried._ I'm not like them."

Sokka shrugged. "I can't either. Neither can Suki. And that's okay, cuz we do other stuff. I can sail and I'm on the City Council and I can fight with a sword and I once made a guy blow up with just my boomerang."

"You did? He _blew up?_"

"Yep! Took half the Western Air Temple with him. It was pretty awesome."

"Cool!" Bumi declared, but grew serious when he looked over Sokka's shoulder at the open doorway. "You think Dad'll like the baby more than me?"

Sokka's mouth flattened. "Of course not. He loves you. But…don't be surprised if your dad spends a lot of time with Tenzin. He's got to teach your brother all about Airbending and what that means. Until today your dad was the last Airbender in the whole world, and now there's your brother too. He's going to have learn _everything_. Personally, I don't think that sounds like fun, do you?"

"I don't know," Bumi said, shrugging.

"Tell you what, how about I teach you how to use a boomerang like me? And when you're old enough, I'll teach you how to use a sword. And how to sail. You're half-Water Tribe, after all. You gotta learn these things. Your dad doesn't know how to do any of that," he added in a conspiratorial whisper.

"I thought Dad knew everything."

"He knows some stuff. Boring Avatar stuff. Dad stuff. I'm cooler though. And I have better hair."

A laugh bubbled up out of him. "Dad doesn't have hair!"

"Yes, he does! Have you seen his legs?" Sokka said, reaching out and tickling Bumi's sides. He giggled and squirmed away from him. Sokka laughed and then stood. "Why don't you go back in there and give your mom a hug, okay? She had a rough day."

"'Kay," Bumi said easily, the seriousness that was so unlike him slipping away as easily as clouds across the sun. He practically skipped into the room, leaving Sokka standing in the hallway alone. He smiled to himself, crossing his arms over his chest, listening to his friends—his family—in the other room.

After a long moment, he caught movement out the corner of his eye and looked up to see Toph standing there. She didn't say anything as she walked toward him. He held out one arm and pulled her against him. She sank into his embrace with a sigh.

"You're gonna have one of those, you know."

"What if I mess it up?" she mumbled as she tilted her head back. He pushed her bangs out of her face, his thumb brushing her cheek. He felt incredibly at peace with the world right now. Absolutely content. _Because I have her. _"I'm not like Katara…"

"You'll do fine. We both will," he said, his forehead pressing against hers. "And if we mess up, then my sister will probably be happy to tell us exactly what we did wrong. In detail."

She smiled a little. "I love you."

"Love you too," he said and then kissed her gently, slowly, lingering. Toph's hands flattened on his chest and hooked in the collar of his shirt. He smiled against hers lips and kissed her harder.

"Hey, you guys—" Aang started, stopping as he peeked around the doorway at them. They broke the kiss as Aang stared at them. A smirk hit the Avatar's lips as he met Sokka's gaze. There was a savage amusement in his eyes, but also a bit of a violent gleam. Sokka was forcibly reminded of the punch Aang had delivered to his face last week. He braced himself for another one. Instead Aang's eyebrow quirked. "Well, it's about time."

"Oh, go play with your baby, Twinkle Toes. I'm trying to get some," Toph said and kissed Sokka again. He heard Aang chuckle and duck back into the room. Sokka didn't care. Pleasure spreading through his body and down to his toes; he kissed Toph back with everything in him.

He didn't plan to ever stop.

_(end)_


End file.
